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The  Croatan  Indians  of 
Samoeon  County 

Butler 


C6e  JLifcrarp 

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CUnitiersttp  of  JBortf)  Carolina 


Collection  of  jRortf)  Carolmtana 
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THE  CROATAN  INDIANS 

OF  SAMPSON  COUNTY 

THEIR  ORIGIN  AND  RACIAL  STATUS 
A  PLEA  FOR  SEPARATE  SCHOOLS 

By  GEO,  E.  BUTLER,  Clinton,  North  Carolina 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2012  with  funding  from 

University  of  North  Carolina  at  Chapel  Hill 


http://archive.org/details/croatanindiansofOObutler 


The  Croatan  Indians 

of  Sampson  County,  North  Carolina 

Their  Origin  and  Racial  Status 
A  Plea  for  Separate  Schools 


By  GEO.    E.    BUTLER 

CLINTON,  NORTH   CAROLINA 


The   See.man  Printery 

Durham,  N.  C. 

191fi 


C  + 
CONTENTS 


PAGK 

A  Petition  of  the  Indians  of  Sampson  County 5 

HISTORICAL  SKETCH 

Historical    9 

The   Croatans    10 

White's   Lost   Colony    10 

Their  Wanderings  and  Location    17 

Political  and  Educational   History    23 

First   Separate   Schools   for   Croatans    27 

Marriage  with  Negroes  Forbidden 28 

Separate   Schools   in  Other   Counties    28 

Separate   Schools   in   Sampson    31 

Why  the  Indian  School  in  Sampson  was  Repealed   31 

Indian  Tax  Payers  in  Sampson   32 

Easily  Recognized  as  Indians   33 

They  Were   Never   Slaves    34 

Formerly  Eroneously  Classed  as  Negroes    34 

Laws  of  State  Recognize  Them  as  Separate  Race 35 

State   Provides   Colleges    for   Whites   and    Negroes   but   not    for 

Indians     36 

Indians  Justly  Proud  of  Their  History  36 

Better  Educational  Facilities   Should  be   Provided    37 

Indian  Taxes  in  Sampson    38 

Sampson  Exceeds  all  Other  Counties,  Except  Robeson,  in  Indian 

Polls  and  Property  39 

Family  Relationship  Between  Robeson  and  Sampson  Croatans....  40 


PAGE 

New  Bethel  Indian  School  42 

Shiloh  Indian  School   44 

The  Indian  Photographs  and  Pictures   46 

'SKETCH  OF  PROMINENT  INDIAN  FAMILIES 
OF  SAMPSON 

The  Emanuel  Family  47 

The  Maynor  Family    51 

The  Brewington  Family  51 

The  Jones   Family    59 

The  Simmons  Family    61 

The  Jacobs  Family  63 

Indian  Families  of  Sampson 63 


ILLUSTRATIONS 


PAGE 

The  Croatan  Normal  School  at  Pembroke Frontispiece 

New  Bethel  Indian  School   42 

Shiloh  Indian  Sunday  School   43 

Jonah  Manuel  and  Family 43 

Enoch  Manuel  and  Wife   48 

William  J.  Bledsole  and  Wife  50 

Luther  Bledsole  and  Children  and  Henry  Bledsole  and  Wife 52 

Hardy  A.  Brewington 54 

Group  of  Boys  and  Girls   56 

L,ee  Locklear,  Steve  Lowrey,  French  Locklear,  Levander  Manuel, 

June    Brewington     58 

C.   D.   Brewington 59 

Jonathan    Goodman    60 

Betsy  J.  Simmons,  William  Simmons   62 

Enoch  Manuel,  Jr.,  and  Family   64 

Henry  Bledsole  and  Wife   65 


A  PETITION  OF  THE  INDIANS 

OF  SAMPSON  COUNTY 

NORTH  CAROLINA 

STATE  OF  NORTH  CAROLINA— County  of  Sampson. 

To  the  Honorable  Board  of  Education  of  Sampson  County, 
North  Carolina: 

The  undersigned,  your  petitioners,  a  part  of  the  Croatan 
Indians  living  in  the  County  of  Sampson,  State  aforesaid, 
having  their  residence  here  for  more  than  two  hundred  years, 
as  citizens  and  tax  payers  of  the  County  and  State,  peacefully 
sharing  all  the  burdens  of  our  government,  and  desiring  to 
share  in  all  the  benefits  incident  thereto,  respectfully  petition 
your  Honorable  Board  for  such  recognition  and  aid  in  the 
education  of  their  children  as  you  may  see  fit  to  extend  to 
them,  the  amount  appropriated  to  be  used  for  the  sole  and 
exclusive  purpose  of  assisting  your  petitioners  to  educate 
their  children  and  fit  them  for  the  duties  of  citizenship. 

Your  petitioners  would  show  that  there  are,  according 
to  the  bulletin  of  the  thirteenth  census  of  1910.  two  hundred 
and  thirteen  Indians  in  Sampson  County.  And,  that  there 
are  of  legal  school  age,  for  whom  there  now  no  separate  school 
provisions,  over  one  hundred  Indian  school  children.  That 
these  children  are  not  permitted  to  attend,  and  have  no  desire 
to  attend,  the  white  schools,  and  in  no  other  section  of  the 
State  are  they  required  to  attend  the  colored  schools. 

That  they  are  a  distinct  and  separate  race  of  people,  and 
are  now  endeavoring,  as  best  they  can,  at  their  own  expense, 
to  build  and  maintain  their  own  schools,  without  any  appro- 
priation from  the  county  or  state,  notwithstanding,  they  cheer- 
fully pay  taxes  for  this  purpose,  and  otherwise  share  in  the 
burdens  and  benefits  of  the  government. 

That  the  Croatan  Indians  of  this  county  are  a  quiet,  peace- 
ful and  industrious  people,  and  have  been  residents  of  this 
section  long  before  the  advent  of  the  white  man,  with  whom 


6  The  Croatan  Indians  oe  Sampson  County 

they  have  always  been  friendly,  and  with  whom  they  have 
always  courted  and  maintained  most  cordial  relations. 

There  is  a  tradition  among  them  that  they  are  a  remnant  of 
White's  Tost  Colony  and  during  the  long  years  that  have  pass- 
ed since  the  disappearance  of  said  colony,  they  have  been 
struggling  to  fit  themselves  and  their  children  for  the  exalted 
privileges  and  duties  of  American  freemen,  and  to  substantiate 
this  historical  and  traditional  claim,  hereto  append,  and  make 
a  part  of  this  petition  such  historical  data  as  they  have  been 
able  to  collect  to  aid  you  in  arriving  at  their  proper  racial 
status. 

Your  petitioners  further  respectfully  show  that  they  are 
the  same  race  and  blood  and  a  part  of  the  same  people,  held  by 
the  same  ties  of  racial  and  social  intercourse  as  the  Croatan 
Indians  of  Robeson  County,  many  of  whom  were  former 
residents  of  Sampson  County,  and  with  whom  they  have  mar- 
ried and  intermarried.  That  since  the  State  of  North  Carolina 
has  been  so  just  and  generous  as  to  provide  special  and  sep- 
arate school  advantages  for  our  brothers  and  kinsmen,  in 
Robeson  County,  as  well  as  in  the  counties  of  Richmond,  Scot- 
land, Hoke,  Person  and  Cumberland,  we  now  appeal  to  you 
for  the  same  just  and  generous  recognition  from  the  State  of 
North  Carolina  and  from  your  Honorable  Board,  in  Sampson 
County,  that  we  may  share  equal  advantages  with  them  as 
people  of  the  same  race  and  blood,  and  as  loyal  citizens  of 
the  State. 

And  your  petitioners  will  ever  pray. 

Respectfully  submitted, 

I  sham  Ammons,  Tucy  Goodman, 

H.  A.  Brewington,  Jesse  Jacobs, 

J.  H.  Brewington,  J.  B.  Simmons, 

J.  R.  Jones,  Wm.  Simmons,  Sr. 

Robbin  Jacobs,  W.  J.  BeEdsolE, 

R.  J.  Jacobs,  Matthew  Burnette, 

Calvin  Ammons,  Enoch  Manuel,  Jr. 

H.  S.  Brewington,  Gus  Robinson, 

Jonathan  Goodman,  M.  L.  Brewington, 


A  Plea  for  Separate;  Schools 


R.  H.  Jacobs, 
J.  W.  Faircloth, 
Wm.  Simmons,  Jr. 
E.  R.  Brewington, 
W.  L.  Bledsole, 
Enoch  Manuel,  or 

Emanuel, 
G.  B.  Brewington, 
W.  B.  Brewington, 
Thomas  Jones, 
C.  O.  Jacobs, 
J.  S.  Strickland, 
Myrtle  Goodman, 
Enos  Jacobs, 
K.  J.  Ammons, 
C.  A.  Brewington, 


C.  D.  Brewington, 
Martha  Jones, 
T.  J.  Jacobs, 
J.  M.  West, 
Albert  Jacobs, 
R.  M.  Williams, 
J.  A.  Brewington, 
HarlEy  Goodman, 
W.  E.  Goodman, 
B.  J.  Eaircloth, 
Percy  Simmons, 
J.  G.  Simmons, 
J.  H.  Bledsole, 
H.  J.  Jones, 
Jonah  Manuel. 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH 

OF  THE  INDIANS  OF  SAMPSON  AND 

ADJOINING  COUNTIES 

On  June  30th,  1914,  the  United  States  Senate  passed  a 
resolution  directing  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  to  cause  an 
investigation  to  be  made  of  the  condition  and  tribal  rights  of 
the  Indians  of  Robeson  and  adjoining  counties  of  North  Caro- 
lina, recently  declared  by  the  Legislature  of  North  Carolina  to 
be  Cherokees,  and  formerly  known  as  Croatans,  and  report  to 
Congress  what  tribal  rights,  if  any,  they  have  with  any  band  or 
tribe ;  whether  they  are  entitled  to  have  or  receive  any  lands,  or 
whether  there  are  any  moneys  due  them,  their  present  condi- 
tion, their  educational  facilities,  and  such  other  facts  as  would 
enable  Congress  to  determine  whether  the  government  would 
be  warranted  in  making  suitable  provision  for  their  support 
and  education. 

In  conformity  with  this  request  the  Secretary  of  the  In- 
terior caused  an  investigation  to  be  made  by  Special  Indian 
Agent,  O.  M.  McPherson,  and  his  report  is  dated  September 
19,  1914,  and  is  quite  full,  showing  a  careful  investigation  on 
the  ground,  as  well  as  historical  research.  This  report  was 
committed  by  the  Secretary  of  Interior,  to  the  President  of 
the  Senate,  on  January  4th,  1915,  and  is  entitled:  "Report  on 
Condition  and  Tribal  Rights  of  the  Indians  of  Robeson  and 
Adjoining  Counties  of  North  Carolina."  This  report  contains 
252  printed  pages,  from  which  we  have  gathered  much  infor- 
mation embraced  in  this  historical  sketch. 

We  have  also  examined  a  booklet  prepared  by  Hon.  Ham- 
ilton McMillan,  of  Fayetteville,  N.  C,  who  has  made  an  ex- 
tensive study  and  investigation  of  the  Croatans,  entitled: 
"Sir  Walter  Raleigh's  Lost  Colony."  We  have  also  examined 
the  sketch  entitled :  "The  Lost  Colony  of  Roanoke,  Its  Pate 
and  Survival"  by  one  of  our  State's  historians,  Hon.  Stephen 
B.  Weeks.    We  have  also  examined  Samuel  A.  Ashe's  Historv 


A  Plea  for  Separate  Schools  9 

of  North  Carolina,  also  Vol.  2  of  Hawk's  History  of  North 
•Carolina ;  also  a  work  entitled :  "Handbook  of  American  In- 
dians/' 

These  historical  records,  the  family  history  and  traditions, 
together  with  such  information  as  was  attainable  from  the 
United  States'  Census  of  1910,  and  the  school  and  tax  records 
of  Sampson  County,  form  the  basis  of  the  information  set  out 
in  this  sketch. 

HISTORICAL 

The  Croatan  Indians  comprise  a  body  of  mixed-blood  peo- 
ple residing  chiefly  in  Sampson,  Robeson,  Bladen,  Columbus, 
Cumberland,  Scotland,  Richmond  and  Hoke  counties,  in  North 
Carolina ;  and  in  Sumpter,  Marlboro,  and  Dillon  counties. 
South  Carolina.  They  are  called  Red  Bones  in  South  Caro- 
lina, but  probably  belong  to  the  same  class  of  people  as 
those  residing  in  North  Carolina.  In  the  Eleventh  Census, 
of  1890,  under  the  title  of  North  Carolina  Indians,  they  are  de- 
scribed as  "generally  white,  showing  the  Indian  mostly  in  ac- 
tions and  habits."     It  is  stated  that, 

"They  are  enumerated  by  the  regular  census  enumerator  in  part  as 
whites ;  that  they  are  clannish  and  hold  with  considerable  pride  to  the 
tradition  that  they  are  the  descendants  of  the  Croatans  of  the  Raleigh 
period  of  North  Carolina  and  Virginia." 

They  are  described  in  the  Hand  Book  of  American  In- 
dians, as  a  people  evidently  of  mixed  Indian  and  white  blood, 
found  in  various  sections  in  the  eastern  part  of  North  Caro- 
lina, but  chiefly  in  Robeson  County.  It  is  also  stated  that  for 
many  years  they  were  classed  with  the  free  negroes,  but  stead- 
fastly refused  to  accept  such  classification  or  to  attend  negro 
schools  or  churches,  claiming  to  be  the  descendants  of  the 
early  native  tribes  and  white  settlers  who  had  intermarried 
with  them. 

A  bulletin  of  the  Thirteenth  Census  (Census  of  1910), 
"Indians  of  North  Carolina,"  shows  their  number  to  be  as  fol- 
lows : 


10  The  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 

Bladen    County    36 

Columbus  County   12 

Cumberland    County    48 

Scotland  County 74 

Union    County    10 

Harnett  County 29 

iSampson    County    213 

Robeson   County    5,895 

Total  in  North  Carolina  6,317 

THE    CROATANS 

The  Indian  Office  at  Washington  had  no  knowledge  of  the 
existence  of  the  Croatan  Indians  until  the  latter  part  of  1888, 
when  that  office  received  a  petition  sent  by  fifty-four  of  these 
Indians  describing  themselves  as  "a  part  of  the  Croatan  In- 
dians living  in  Robeson  County,"  and  claiming  to  be  "a  rem- 
nant of  White's  Lost  Colony,"  and  petitioned  Congress  for  aid. 
On  January  11,  1889,  the  directors  of  the  Ethnological  Bu- 
reau in  response  to  this  petition  replied : 

"I  beg  leave  to  say  that  Croatan  was  in  1585  and  thereabouts  the 
name  of  an  island  and  Indian  village  just  north  of  Cape  Hatteras, 
N.  C.  White's  Colony  of  120  men  and  women  was  landed  on  Roanoke 
Island  just  to  the  north  in  1587,  and  in  1590  when  White  returned  to 
revisit  the  colony  he  found  no  trace  of  it  on  Roanoke  Island,  save  the 
name  'Croatan'  carved  upon  a  tree,  which,  according  to  a  previous 
understanding,  was  interpreted  to  mean  that  the  colonists  had  left 
Roanoke  Island  for  Croatan.  No  actual  trace  of  the  missing  colonists 
was  ever  found,  but  more  than  100  years  afterwards  Lawson  obtained 
traditional  information  from  the  Hatteras  Indians  which  led  him  to 
believe  that  the  colonists  had  been  incorporated  with  the  Indians.  It 
was  thought  that  traces  of  white  blood  could  be  discovered  among  the 
Indians,  some  among  they  having  grey  eyes.  It  is  probable  that  the 
greater  number  of  the  colonists  were  killed ;  but  it  was  quite  in  keep- 
ing with  Indian  usages  that  a  greater  or  less  number,  especially  women 
and  children,  should  have  been  made  captive  and  subsequently  incor- 
porated into  the  tribe." 

WHITE'S   LOST   COLONY 

There  is  a  tradition  among  these  Indians  that  their  an- 
cestors were  white  people,  a  part  of  Gov.  White's  Lost  Colony, 
who  amalgamated  with  the  coast  Indians  and  afterwards  re- 


A  Plea  for  Separate:  Schools  11 

moved  to  the  interior,  where  they  now  reside.  It  is  a  matter 
of  common  knowledge  that  the  Indians  are  a  people  of  "tra- 
ditions," being  entirely  destitute  of  written  records.  These 
traditions  would  be  of  little  value  were  they  not  supported  by 
authentic  historical  data. 

Governor  White  left  a  colony  of  120  men  and  women  from 
England  on  Roanoke  Island  in  1587,  and  when  he  returned  in 
1590,  he  found  no  trace  of  the  colony  save  the  word  "Croatan" 
carved  upon  a  tree.  According  to  a  secret  understanding  which 
White  had  with  the  colonists  before  he  returned  to  England,  if 
they  departed  from  Roanoke  Island  before  his  return  they  were 
to  carve  upon  the  trees  or  posts  of  doors  "the  name  of  the 
place  where  they  should  be  seated."  When  White  and  his 
men  returned  in  1590  where  they  had  left  the  colony  three 
years  before,  they  saw  upon  a  tree  carved  in  Roman  letters 
the  word  "croatan"  without  any  cross  or  sign  of  distress 
about  the  word,  for  he  had  the  understanding  that  if  any  mis- 
fortune came  to  them  they  should  put  a  cross  over  the  word. 

One  of  the  early  maps  of  the  Carolina  coast,  which  ap- 
pears in  Lederer's  Travels,  prepared  in  1666,  represents  Croa- 
toan as  an  island  south  of  Cape  Hatteras.  Croatan  is  made 
as  a  part  of  the  mainland  directly  west  of  Roanoke  Island. 
Governor  White  indicates  that  the  colony  originally  removed 
to  Croatoan,  and  not  Croatan. 

The  term  Croatan,  or  Croatoan  was  applied  by  the  Eng- 
lish to  the  friendly  tribe  of  Manteo,  whose  chief  abode  was 
on  the  island  on  the  coast  southward  from  Roanoke.  The 
name  Croatan  seems  to  indicate  a  locality  in  the  territory 
claimed  by  Manteo  and  his  tribe.  Manteo  was  one  of  two 
friendly  Indians  who  had  been  carried  to  England  by  Sir  Rich- 
ard Grenville,  and  returned  with  Governor  White,  on  the  oc- 
casion of  his  first  voyage  in  1587.  By  direction  of  Sir  Walter 
Raleigh,  Manteo  was  baptized  and  in  reward  for  his  services 
to  the  English  he  was  designated  "L,ord  of  Roanoke." 

McMillan  in  his  pamphlet  says : 

"It  is  evident  from  the  story  of  Governor  White,  that  the  colonists 
went  southward  along  the  coast  to   Croatoan   Island,  now  a  part  of 


12  The  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 

Carteret  County,  in  North  Carolina,  and  distant  about  100  miles  in  a 
direct  line   from   Albemarle   Sound." 

Dr.  Hawks,  in  his  history,  speaks  of  this  tribe  as  the  "Hat- 
teras  Indians."  From  the  first  appearance  of  the  English,  re- 
lations of  the  most  friendly  character  were  known  to  exist 
between  this  tribe  and  the  colony.    Manteo  was  their  chief. 

The  Hatteras  Indians  are  described  in  the  Hand  Book  of 
American  Indians  as  follows : 

"Hatteras  ; — An  Algonquian  tribe  living  in  1701  on  the  sand  banks 
about  C.  Hatteras,  N.  C,  E.  of  Pamlico  Sound,  and  frequenting  Roa- 
noke Id.  Their  single  village,  Sandbanks,  had  then  only  about  80  in- 
habitants. They  showed  traces  of  white  blood  and  claimed  that  some 
of  their  ancestors  were  white.  They  may  have  been  identical  with  the 
Croatan  Indians  (q.  a),  with  whom  Raleigh's  colonists  at  Roanoke 
Island  are  supposed  to  have  taken  refuge." 

John  Lawson  was  an  early  English  explorer  who  left  a 
permanent  record  of  his  travels  among  the  tribes  of  the  Caro- 
linas.  He  commenced  his  journey  on  December  28th,  1700. 
Lawson's  History  of  North  Carolina  is  regarded  as  the  stand- 
ard authority  for  the  period  it  covers,  and  he  says  that  there 
was  a  band  of  Indians  in  the  eastern  part  of  North  Carolina 
known  as  Hatteras  Indians,  that  had  lived  on  Roanoke  Island 
and  that  these  told  him  that  many  of  their  ancestors  were  white 
people  and  could  "talk  in  a  book."  That  many  of  these  Indians 
had  grey  eyes  that  were  found  among  no  other  Indians,  that 
they  were  friendly  to  the  English  and  were  ready  to  do  all 
friendly  services. 

He  says  it  is  probable  that  White's  Colony  miscarried  for 
want  of  timely  supplies  from  England,  or  through  the  treach- 
ery of  the  natives,  for  we  may  reasonably  suppose  that  the 
English  were  forced  to  cohabit  with  them  and  that  in  process 
of  time,  they  conformed  themselves  to  the  manners  of  their 
Indian  relations. 

John  Lawson  travelled  among  the  Indians  of  North  Caro- 
lina before  they  had  come  in  contact  with  any  of  the  white 
settlers,  and  found  the  same  tribe  of  Indians  residing  on  the 
south  side  of  the  Neuse  River  known  as  the  Coree  Tribe.    One 


A  Plea  for  Separate;  Schools  13 

of  the  head  men  of  this  tribe  was  an  Indian  of  the  name  of 
Enoe-Will,  who  travelled  several  days  with  Lawson  as  his 
guide.  Speaking  of  this  Indian  Lawson  says :  "Our  guide  and 
land-lord,  Enoe-Will,  was  the  best  and  most  agreeable  temper 
that  ever  I  saw  within  an  Indian.  Being  always  ready  to 
serve  not  out  of  gain  but  real  affection." 

Lawson  had  with  him  his  Bible,  and  Enoe-Will,  his  guide, 
was  accompanied  by  his  son  Jack,  14  years  old,  and  Enoe- 
Will  requested  Lawson  to  teach  his  son  "to  talk  in  his 
book"  and  "to  make  paper  speak,  which  was  called  our  way 
of  writing." 

From  McPherson's  Report,  commenting  on  the  above,  we 
copy  as  follows : 

"The  presence  of  grey  eyes  and  fair  skin  among  these  people  in 
Lawson's  time  can  not  be  explained  on  any  other  hypothesis  than  that 
of  amalgamation  with  the  white  race;  and  when  Lawson  wrote  (1709) 
there  was  a  tradition  among  the  Hatteras  Indians  that  their  ancestors 
were  white  people  'and  could  talk  in  a  book ;'  and  that  'they  valued 
themselves  extremely  for  their  affinity  to  the  English  and  were  ready 
to  do  them  all  friendly  offices.'  I  have  already  referred  to  the  fact 
that  Enoe-Will,  a  Coree  Indian,  who  had  been  raised  on  the  coast  and 
who  was  probably  nearly  70  years  of  age  when  he  acted  as  Lawson's 
guide,  knew  that  the  English  could  'talk  in  a  book'  and  as  he  further 
expressed  it,  'could  make  paper  talk,'  indication  that  he  was  familiar 
with  the  customs  of  the  English. 

"Couple  this  with  the  fact  that  the  guide  had  an  English  name, 
'Will,'  which  he  probably  assumed  at  the  age  of  20  or  21,  and  the  in- 
formation previously  given  by  him  that  he  lived  on  Enoe  Bay  when 
he  was  a  boy  leads  quite  certainly  to  the  conclusion  that  the  Corees  had 
come  in  contact  with  at  least  some  portion  of  the  lost  colony.  It  must 
be  remembered  that  when  Will  was  a  boy  there  were  no  English  set- 
tlements on  the  east  coast  of  North  Carolina  other  than  White's  Lost 
Colony. 

"Their  religion  and  idea  of  faith  was  more  exalted  than  was  com- 
mon among  the  savages,  and  leads  to  the  belief  that  they  had  had 
communication  with  the  more  civilized  race  from  the  East. 

"There  is  an  abiding  tradition  among  these  people  at  the  present 
time  that  their  ancestors  were  the  Lost  Colony,  amalgamated  with  some 
tribe  of  Indians.  This  tradition  is  supported  by  their  looks,  their  com- 
plexion, color  of  skin,  hair  and  eyes,  by  their  manners,  customs  and 
habits,  and  by  the  fact  that  while  they  are,  in  part,  of  undoubted 
Indian  origin,  they  have  no   Indian  names   and  no   Indian  language — 


14  The  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 

not   even  a   single   word — and  know  nothing   of   Indian   customs   and 
habits. 

"Speaking  of  the  language  of  this  people,  Mr.  McMillan  says :  'The 
language  spoken  is  almost  pure  Anglo-Saxon,'  a  fact  which  we  think 
affords  corroborative  evidence  of  their  relation  to  the  Lost  Colony  of 
White.  Mon  (Saxon)  is  used  for  man,  father  is  pronounced  'fayther,' 
and  a  tradition  is  usually  begun  as  follows :  'Mon,  my  fayther  told  me 
that  his  fayther  told  him,'  etc.  'Mension'  is  used  for  measurement, 
'aks'  for  ask,  'hit'  for  it,  'hosen'  for  hose,  'lovend'  for  loving,  'housen' 
for  houses.  They  seem  to  have  but  two  sounds  for  the  letter  'a,'  one 
like  a  short  'o.'  Many  of  the  words  in  common  use  among  them  have 
long  been  obsolete  in  English-speaking  countries." 

Col.  Fred  A.  Olds,  a  newspaper  correspondent  of  Raleigh, 
says  of  their  language  : 

"The  language  spoken  by  the  Croatans  is  a  very  pure  but  quaint 
old  Anglo-Saxon,  and  there  are  in  daily  use  some  75  words  which 
have  come  down  from  the  great  days  of  Raleigh  and  his  mighty  mis- 
tress, Queen  Elizabeth.  These  old  Saxon  words  arrest  attention  in- 
stantly. For  man  they  say  'mon,'  pronounce  father  'fayther,'  use 
'mension'  for  measurement,  'ax'  for  ask,  'hosen'  for  hose,  'lovend'  for 
loving,  'wit'  for  knowledge,  'housen'  for  houses ;  and  many  other  words 
in  daily  use  by  them  have  for  years  been  entirely  obsolete  in  English- 
speaking  countries. 

"Just  when  the  colonists  and  Indians,  with  whom  they  amalgamated, 
removed  to  the  interior  is  not  certainly  known,  but  it  is  believed  to 
have  been  as  early  as  1650.  At  the  coming  of  the  first  white  settlers 
to  what  is  now  known  as  Robeson  County,  there  was  found  located 
on  the  banks  of  the  Lumber  River  a  large  tribe  of  Indians,  speaking 
the  English  language,  tilling  the  soil,  owning  slaves,  and  practicing 
many  of  the  arts  of  civilized  life.  And  what  is  of  greater  significance, 
a  very  large  number  of  the  names  appearing  among  the  Lost  Colony 
are  to  be  found  among  the  Croatan  Indians,  a  fact  inexplicable  upon 
any  other  hypothesis  than  that  the  Lost  Colony  amalgamated  with 
the  Indians. 

"Those  names,  common  to  both,  are  printed  in  italics  in  the  Mc- 
Millan Booklet.     Mr.  McMillan  adds: 

"  'The  writer  has  been  much  interested  in  investigating  the  tra- 
dition prevalent  among  the  Croatans,  and  expresses  his  firm  convic- 
tion that  they  are  descended  from  the  friendly  tribes  found  on  our 
east  coast  in  1587,  and  also  descended  from  the  lost  colonists  of  Roa- 
noke, who  amalgamated  with  this  tribe.' 

"From  the  foregoing  I  have  no  hesitancy  in  expressing  the  belief 
that   the   Indians    which   originally   settled   in    Robeson   and   adjoining 


A  PivEA  for  Separate  Schools 


15 


counties  in  North  Carolina  were  an  amalgamation  of  the  Hatteras 
Indians  with  Governor  White's  Lost  Colony;  the  present  Indians  are 
their  descendants  with  further  amalgamation  with  the  early  Scotch 
and  Scotch-Irish  settlers,  such  amalgamation  continuing  down  to  the 
present  time,  together  with  a  small  degree  of  amalgamation  with  other 
races. 

"I  do  find  that  the  Hatteras  Indians  or  the  so-called  Croatan 
Indians  ever  had  any  treaty  relations  with  the  United  States,  or  that 
they  have  any  tribal  rights  with  any  tribe  or  band  of  Indians ;  neither 
do  I  find  that  they  have  received  any  lands  or  that  there  are  any 
moneys   due  them." 

McPherson  says,  that  in  investigating  the  traditions  preva- 
lent among  this  singular  people  he  found  many  family  names 
identical  with  those  of  the  Lost  Colony  of  1587.  He  publishes 
a  list  of  the  names  of  all  of  the  men,  women  and  children  of 
the  Roanoke  colony,  which  arrived  in  Virginia,  and  remained 
to  inhabit  there.  We  give  below  a  list  of  the  names  of  this  lost 
colony  as  follows  : 

Men 
Roger  Baily 


Ananias  Dare 
Christopher   Cooper 
Thomas  Stevens 
John  Sampson 
Dionys   Harvie 
Roger  Prat 
George  Howe 
Simon  Fernando 
Nicholas  Johnson 
Thomas  Warner 
Anthony  Cage 
John  Jones 
John  Brooks 
Cuthbert    White 
John  Bright 
Clement  Taylor 
William  Sole 
John   Cotsmuir 
Humphrey  Newton 
Thomas  Colman 
Thomas  Gramme,  or 
Graham,  Graeme 
Mark  Bennet 


William   Clement 
Robert  Little 
Hugh    Taylor 
William   Berde 
Richard  Wildye 
Lewes  Wotton 
Michael  Bishop 
Henry  Browne 
Henry   Rufotte 
Richard  Tomkins 
Henry   Dorrell 
John  Stilman 
John  Earnest 
Henry  Johnson 
John  Starte 
Richard  Darige 
William  Lucas 
Arnold  Archard 
William    Nichols 
Thomas   Phevens 
John  Borden 
Charles   Florrie 
Henry  Mylton 
Henry  Paine 


16 


The  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 


John  Gibbes 
Robert  Wilkinson 
John  Tydway 
Ambrose  Viccars 
Edmund  English 
Thomas  Topan 
Henry  Berry 
Richard  Berry 
John  Spendlove 
John    Hemmington 
Thomas  Butler 
Edward  Powell 
John  Burdon 
James  Hynde 
William    Willes 
William   Brown 
Michael    Myllet 
Thomas   Smith 
Richard  Kemme 
Thomas  Harris 
Richard  Traverner 


Women 


Eleanor  Dare 
Margery  Harvie 
Agnes  Wood 
Winifred  Powell 
Joyce  Archard 
Jane  Jones 
Elizabeth   Glane 
Janes   Pierce 


Thomas  Harris 
Thomas  Scot 
Peter  Little 
John  Wyles 
Bryan   Wyles 
Thomas  Ellis 
John  Wright 
William   Dutton 
Maurice  Allen 
William  Waters 
Richard  Arthur 
John  Chapman 
James  Lasie 
John   Cheven 
Thomas  Hewett 
George  Martin 
Hugh  Patterson 
Martin  Sutton 
John  Farre 
John  Bridger 
Griffin   Jones 
John    White 
Richard   Shabedge 


An  dry  Tappan 
Alice  Charman 
Emma   Merimoth 

Colman. 

Margaret  Lawrence 
Joan  Warren 
Jane  Mannering 
Rose  Payne 
Elizabeth  Viccars 


Boys  and  Children 


John  Sampson 
Robert   Ellis 
Ambrose   Viccas 
Thomas  Archard 


Thomas    Humphrey 
Thomas   Smart 
George  Howe 
John   Prat 
William   Wythers 


Children  Born  in  Virginia 
Virginia   Dare  


-Harvie 


A  Ptfa  for  Separate;  Schools  17 

All  of  the  above  names  in  italics  are  today  Indian  names  in 
Robeson,  Sampson  and  adjoining  counties,  and  in  addition  to 
these  we  have  the  following  Indian  names  in  Sampson  County, 
to-wit :  Jacobs,  Goodman,  Simmons,  Ammons,  Brewington, 
Mainor,  Manuel  or  Emanuel,  Jones,  Bedsole,  Faircloth,  Hard- 
ing and  Warrick. 

The  Croatans  were  first  found  over  two  hundred  years  ago 
in  Eastern  North  Carolina,  on  the  banks  of  the  Neuse,  Cape 
Fear,  Lumbee,  Coharee,  and  South  Rivers  in  Sampson  and 
adjoining  counties  where  they  are  living  to  this  day  and  are 
found  nowhere  else. 

TRACING   THFJR   WANDERINGS   AND  FINAL   LOCATION 

McPherson,  in  his  report,  says  that  the  region  inhabited  by 
the  Croatans  is  a  low  woodland,  swampy  region,  locally  known 
as  pocosin  land,  abounding  in  whortleberries  and  black  berries, 
which  bring  some  revenue  to  the  people.  Commenting  upon 
this  part  of  McPherson's  report  Dr.  Weeks  says : 

"This  was  probably  on  the  upper  waters  of  the  Neuse,  in  what  may 
now  be  Wayne  and  Lenoir  Counties.  It  is  probable  that  they  were 
rejoined  by  those  who  had  not  undertaken  the  expedition  towards 
Virginia,  and  from  this  point  they  could  have  passed  easily  into 
Sampson  and  Robeson  Counties  in  conformity  with  their  traditions, 
as  related  by  Mr.  McMillan." 

Their  ancestors,  the  Cherokees,  according  to  their  tradition, 
had  their  principal  abiding  place  in  the  mountains  to  the  west, 
and  had  trails  or  roads  leading  to  various  points  on  the  coast. 
On  the  principal  one  of  these  roads,  known  as  the  Lowree 
Road,  they  had  settlements  on  the  Neuse  River,  on  the  waters 
of  Black  River,  on  the  Cape  Fear,  Lumbee,  and  as  far  as  the 
Santee  in  South  Carolina.  Their  principal  settlement  was  in 
the  territory  along  the  Lumbee  and  covering  a  large  part  of 
the  present  county  of  Robeson,  and  extending  through  what  is 
now  Cumberland  County  as  far  as  Averysboro  on  the  Cape- 
Fear.  They  had  other  trails  leading  from  the  mountains  east- 
ward, and  three  of  them  united  with  the  Lowrie  Road  or  trail 
where  there  was  a  crossing  of  the  Cape  Fear,  where  the  present 
town  of  Fayetteville  is  now  situated. 


18  Th£  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 

A  Rev.  Mr.  Blair,  who  was  a  missionary  to  the  settlement 
on  the  eastern  coast  of  North  Carolina,  wrote  to  Lord  Wey- 
mouth in  1703,  regarding  the  Indian  tribe  with  which  he  came  in 
contact,  and  refers  to  them  as  a  great  nation  of  Indians  and 
very  civilized  people.  McPherson  says  that  there  is  reason  to 
believe  that  the  descendants  of  the  colony  were  living  in  the 
country  southeast  of  the  Pamlico,  at  the  time  that  Mr.  Blair 
writes,  and  that  they  emigrated  westward  toward  the  interior, 
where  a  large  body  of  Croatan  Indians  and  descendants  of  the 
lost  colonists  had  previously  located.  It  is  probable  that  the 
civilized  Indians  mentioned  were  a  portion  of  the  Croatan 
Indians  as  there  was  no  other  tribe  to  which  the  reference 
could  apply. 

In  1703,  there  were  no  settlements  of  white  men  known  to 
lexist  beyond  the  region  around  Pamlico  Sound.  Subsequent 
to  that  date  white  emigrants  penetrated  the  wilderness,  and 
in  1729  there  was  a  settlement  made  on  Hearts  Creek,  a  tribu- 
tary of  the  Cape  Fear  and  near  the  site  of  the  present  town 
of  Fayetteville.  Scotchmen  arrived  in  what  is  now  known  as 
Richmond  County  in  North  Carolina  as  early  as  1700.  French 
Huguenots  penetrated  as  far  north  as  the  southern  boundary 
of  North  Carolina  in  the  early  part  of  the  eighteenth  century. 

At  the  coming  of  the  white  settlers  there  was  found  located 
on  the  waters  of  the  Lumbee  River  a  large  tribe  of  Indians 
speaking  English,  tilling  the  soil,  owning  slaves,  and  practic- 
ing many  of  the  arts  of  civilized  life.  They  held  their  lands 
in  common,  and  land  titles  only  became  known  on  the  approach 
of  the  white  men.  The  first  grant  of  land  to  any  of  this  tribe 
of  which  there  is  written  evidence,  was  made  by  King  George 
II,  in  1732,  to  Henry  Berry  and  James  Lowrie,  two  leading 
men  of  the  tribe,  and  was  located  on  Lowrie  Swamp,  east  of 
the  Lumber  River  in  the  present  county  of  Robeson.  A  sub- 
sequent grant  was  made  to  James  Lowrie  in  1738.  These 
people  were  hospitable,  and  friendly  relations  were  estab- 
lished between  them  and  their  white  neighbors.  These  In- 
dians built  good  roads  connecting  the  distant  settlements  with 
their  principal  seat  on  the  Lumbee,  as  the  Lumber  River  was 


A  Plea  for  Separate  Schools  19 

then  called.  One  of  the  great  roads  constructed  by  them  can 
be  traced  from  a  point  on  Lumber  River  for  20  miles  to  an  old 
settlement  near  the  mouth  of  Hearts  Creek,  now  Cross  Creek. 
Another  highway  still  bearing  the  name  of  Lowrie  Road,  and 
used  at  this  day  as  a  public  road,  extends  from  the  town  of 
Fayetteville,  through  Cumberland  and  Robeson  counties,  in  a 
southwest  direction  toward  an  ancient  Croatan  settlement  on 
the  Pee  Dee. 

Henry  Berry,  the  grantee  previously  mentioned,  was  a 
lineal  descendent  of  the  English  Colonist,  Henry  Berry,  who 
was  left  on  Roanoke  Island  in  1587.  Many  of  this  tribe  served 
in  the  Continental  Army  during  the  Revolutionary  War  and 
received  pensions  within  the  memory  of  persons  yet  living. 

From  Hamilton  McMillan's  booklet,  "Sir  Walter  Raleigh's 
Lost  Colony,"  we  quote  as  follows : 

"At  an  early  period  after  the  English  colony  became  incorporated 
with  the  tribe,  they  began  to  emigrate  westward.  The  first  settlement 
made  was  probably  in  what  is  now  Sampson  County  on  several  small 
rivers,  tributary  to  Black  River.  (These  were  probably  Big  Coharie 
and  Little  Coharie.)  A  portion  located  on  the  Cape  Fear  near  a  place 
now  bearing  the  name  of  'Indian  Wells'  and  at  Hearts  Creek  in  Cum- 
berland County,  now  Fayetteville.  It  is  impossible  to  ascertain  at  what 
date  the  tribe  located  in  Robeson,  but  it  is  probable  that  they  have 
resided  there  for  200  years.  According  to  their  universal  tradition 
they  were  located  there  long  before  the  troubles  with  the  Tuscaroras 
began  in  1711.  Some  of  the  tribe  fought  under  'Bonnul'  as  they  term 
Col.  Barnwell,  and  we  have  reliable  evidence  that  they  brought  home 
a  few  Mattamuskeet  Indians  as  prisoners  and  slaves.  The  descendants 
of  these  Mattamuskeets  had  their  traditions  also.  The  name  of  Dare 
was  not  recognized  by  them  in  first  investigation  but  we  afterwards 
discovered  that  they  pronounce  the  name  variously  as  Darr,  Durr,  and 
Dorr.  This  discovery  was  made  when  we  related  to  an  old  chronicler 
of  the  tribe  the  story  of  Virginia  Dare,  the  first  white  child  born  on. 
American  soil.  This  name  Dorr  or  Durr  has  disappeared  on  the  Lum- 
ber River  since  the  War  of  1812.  The  name  Dorr  appears  on  the 
muster  roll  of  a  company  composed  in  part  of  Indians  from  Robeson 
County  which  served  during  that  war,  in  the  United  States  Army. 

Several  chroniclers,  or  old  persons  who  keep  the  traditions  of  the 
tribe,  have  informed  us  that  there  are  families  bearing  the  name  of 
Dorr  or  Durr,  to  be  found  in  the  Western  North  Carolina  who  are 
claimed  by  the  tribe  as  descended  from  the  English  Colonists  of  Roa- 


20  The;  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 

noke.  These  chroniclers  affirm  that  the  Dares,  Coopers,  Harvies,  and 
others  retained  their  purity  of  blood  and  were  generally  the  pioneers  in 
emigration.  Many  names  are  corrupted,  so  that  it  is  difficult  to  trace 
their  history.  The  name  of  Goins  was  originally  O'Guin,  as  appears 
from  ancient  court  records.  The  name  of  Lumber,  as  applied  to  the 
river  was  originally  Lumbee  or  Lombee.  The  name  of  Manteo  is  not 
familiar  to  them.  While  they  have  a  tradition  of  their  leader  or  chief 
who  went  to  England,  yet  they  have  preserved  no  name  for  him.  The 
nearest  approach  to  the  name  Manteo,  is  Maino  or  Mainor.  An  old 
woman,  whom  we  interviewed,  spoke  of  their  great  man  as  Wonoke. 
This  name  may  be  a  corruption  of  Roanoke,  for  we  must  remember 
Manteo  was  made  Lord  of  Roanoke." 

Dr.  Stephen  B.  Weeks,  in  his  article  entitled,  "The  Tost 
Colony  of  Roanoke,  Its  Fate  and  Survival,"  we  quote  as  fol- 
lows : 

"The  other  end  of  the  chain  is  to  be  found  in  a  tribe  of  Indians 
now  living  in  Robeson  County  and  the  adjacent  sections  of  North 
Carolina,  and  recognized  officially  by  the  State  in  1885  as  Croatan 
Indians.  These  Indians  are  believed  to  be  the  lineal  descendants  of 
the  Colonists  left  by  John  White  on  Roanoke  Island  in  1587.  The 
migrations  of  the  Croatan  tribe  from  former  homes  farther  to  the 
east  can  be  traced  to  their  present  home  from  former  settlements 
on  Black  River  in  Sampson  County.  The  time  of  their  removal  is  un- 
certain; but  all  traditions  point  to  a  time  anterior  to  the  Tuscarora 
War  in  1711,  and  it  is  probable  that  they  were  fixed  in  their  present 
homes  as  early  as  1650.  During  the  eighteenth  century  they  occupied 
the  country  as  far  west  as  the  Pee  Dee,  but  their  principal  seats  were 
on  Lumber  River,  in  Robeson  County,  and  extended  along  it  for 
twenty  miles. 

"The  Croatans  fought  under  Colonel  Barnwell  against  the  Tusca- 
roras  in  1711,  and  the  tribe  of  today  speak  with  pride  of  the  stand 
taken  by  their  ancestors  under  "Bonnul"  for  the  cause  of  the  whites. 
In  this  war  they  took  some  of  the  Mattamuskeet  Indians  prisoners  and 
made  them  slaves.  Many  of  the  Croatans  were  in  the  Continental 
Army;  in  the  War  of  1812  a  company  was  mustered  into  the  Army  of 
the  United  States  and  members  of  the  tribe  received  pensions  for  these 
services  within  the  memory  of  the  present  generation ;  they  also 
fought  in  the  armies  of  the  Confederate  States.  Politically  they  have 
had  little  chance  for  development.  From  1783  to  1835  they  had  the 
right  to  vote,  performed  military  duties,  encouraged  schools,  and  built 
churches ;  but  by  the  Constitutional  Convention  of  1835  the  franchise 
was  denied  to  all  'free  persons  of  color,'  and  to  effect  a  political  pur- 
pose it  was  contended  by  both  parties  that  the  Croatans  came  under 


A  Plsa  for  Separate;  Schools  21 

this  category.  The  convention  of  1868  removed  this  ban;  but  as  they 
had  long  been  classed  as  mulattoes  they  were  obliged  to  patronize  the 
negro  schools.  This  they  refused  to  do  as  a  rule,  preferring  that  their 
children  should  grow  up  in  ignorance,  for  they  hold  the  negro  in 
utmost  contempt  and  no  great  insult  can  be  given  a  Croatan  than  to 
call  him  'a  nigger.' 

"Finally,  in  1885,  through  the  efforts  of  Mr.  Hamilton  McMillan, 
who  lived  near  them  and  knows  their  history,  justice  long  delayed  was 
granted  them  by  the  General  Assembly  of  North  Carolina.  They  were 
officially  recognized  as  Croatan  Indians ;  separate  schools  were  pro- 
vided for  them  and  intermarriage  with  negroes  was  forbidden.  Since 
this  action  on  the  part  of  the  State  they  have  become  better  citizens. 

"They  are  almost  universally  landowners,  occupying  about  sixty 
thousand  acres  in  Robeson  County.  They  are  industrious  and  frugal, 
and  anxious  to  improve  their  condition.  No  two  families  occupy  the 
same  house,  but  each  has  its  own  establishment. 

"They  are  found  of  all  colors  from  black  to  white,  and  in  some 
cases  can  not  be  distinguished  from  white  people.  They  have  the 
prominent  cheek  bones,  the  steel-grey  eyes,  the  straight  black  hair  of 
the  Indian.  Those  showing  the  Indian  features  .most  prominently  have 
no  beards.  Their  women  are  frequently  beautiful;  their  movements 
are  graceful,  their  dresses  becoming,  their  figures  superb. 

"Mr.  John  S.  Leary,*  a  prominent  politician  of  Raleigh,  and  pro- 
fessor of  law  in  Shaw  University,  was  a  member  of  the  tribe,  and  one 
of  their  number  has  reached  the  Senate  of  the  United  States,  for  Hon. 
Hiram  R.  Revels,  who  was  born  in  Fayetteville,  North  Carolina,  in 
1822,  and  who  was  a  senator  from  Mississippi  in  1870-71,  is  not  a  negro, 
but  a  Croatan  Indian. 

"John  Lawson  met  some  of  the  Croatan  Indians  about  1709  and 
was  told  that  their  ancestors  were  white  men.    White  settlers  came  into 


*  The  late  Mr.  John  S.  Leary  wrote  Dr.  Weeks  from  Fayetteville,  N.   C,  under 
date   of  July   22,    1891: 

"I  do  not  know  as  to  whether  any  considerable  number  of  the  'Croatans'  emi-  . 
grated  from  the  State  at  any  time  in  a  body.  Quite  a  number  who  were  con- 
nected with  the  Croatans  in  Robeson  County  left  the  State  at  different  times. 
Senator  Hiram  R.  Revels,  his  brother,  Willis  B.  &  Absalom,  and  two  sistrs,  some 
of  the  Oxendines,  Leary's  and  Dials;  I  do  not  know  the  exact  number.  My 
father's  mother  was  a  Revel,  born  in  Robeson  County,  was  2nd  cousin  to  Hiram. 
She  married  an  Irishman  named  O'Leary.  Father  was  born  in  Sampson  County, 
on  the  Big  Coharie,  his  parents  having  moved  to  that  countyy.  In  1806  they 
came  to  Fayetteville,  where  father  lived  until  he  died  in  1880.  Father  came  from 
the  'Croatan'  stock.  My  mother  was  born  in  France,  and  was  brought  to  this 
country  by  her  parents  in  1812.  Father  and  mother  were  married  in  1825.  In 
1857  my  father  sent  my  brother,  Lewis  Sheridan  Leary,  to  Oberlin,  Ohio.  WKile 
there  he  formed  an  acquaintance  with  John  Brown  and  went  with  him  to 
Harper's  Ferry  n  October,  1859.  He  was  killed  on  the  17th  day  of  October,  1859. 
while  guarding  what  is  now  known  as  'John  Brown's  Fort.'  I  saw  this  fort 
for  the  first  time  n  1880.  It  is  a  small  brick  house.  I  have  a  grand  uncle,  my 
father's  mother's  brother,  living  now  in  the  Croatan  settlement  in  Robeson  County, 
108  years  old.  As  soon  as  I  can  make  it  convenient  to  see  him  I  will  have  a 
talk  with  him  and  put  on  paper  whatever  information  I  can  get  from  him  and  give 
you  the  benefit  df  it." 


22  Th£  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 

the  middle  section  of  North  Carolina  as  early  as  1715  and  found  the 
ancestors  of  the  present  tribe  of  Croatan  Indians  tilling  the  soil,  hold- 
ing slaves,  and  speaking  English.  The  Croatans  of  today  claim  descent 
from  the  lost  colony.  Their  habits,  disposition,  and  mental  character- 
istics show  traces  both  of  Indian  and  European  ancestry.  Their  lan- 
guage is  the  English  of  three  hundred  years  ago,  and  their  names  are 
in  many  cases  the  same  as  those  borne  by  original  colonists.  No  other 
theory  of  their  origin  has  been  advanced,  and  it  is  confidently  believed 
that  the  one  here  proposed  is  logically  and  historically  the  best,  sup- 
ported as  it  is  both  by  external  and  internal  evidence.  If  this  theory 
is  rejected,  then  the  critics  must  explain  some  other  way  the  origin  of 
a  people  which,  after  the  lapse  of  three  hundred  years,  show  the  char- 
acteristics, speak  the  language,  and  possess  the  family  names  of  the 
second  English  colony  planted  in  the  Western  world." 

Hamilton  McMillan  in  his  pamphlet  says : 

"As  previously  intimated,  the  traditions  of  the  Indians  now  living 
in  Robeson  are  sufficiently  clear  to  prove  that  at  an  early  period  they 
located  south  of  Pamlico  sound  on  the  mainland.  Tradition  in  regard 
to  their  ancient  dwelling  places  on  the  tributaries  of  Black  River  in  the 
present  county  of  Sampson  are  more  definite.  The  fact  that  French, 
English,  Irish,  and  perhaps  German  names  are  found  among  them  is 
accounted  for  by  the  tradition  that  marriages  frequently  occurred  be- 
tween them  and  the  early  immigrants.  The  name  Chavis  which  is 
common  among  this  people,  is  probably  a  corruption  of  the  French 
name  Cheves.  Goins  was  O'Guin,  as  court  records  prove.  Leary  was 
O'Leary.  Blauc  or  Blaux  is  French.  Braboy  is  of  recent  origin  and 
was  originally  'Brave  Boy'  and  dates  back  to  the  war  with  the  Tusca- 
roras  in  1711  and  was  conferred  on  an  Indian  by  the  commander  of  the 
English  for  some  meritorious  act. 

"From  the  earliest  settlement  of  the  country  along  the  Lumber 
River  these  Indians  have  been  an  English-speaking  people.  Their 
language  has  many  peculiarities  and  reminds  one  of  the  English  spoken 
in  the  days  of  Chaucer.  The  number  of  old  English  works  in  com- 
mon use  among  them  which  have  long  been  obsolete  in  English-speak- 
ing countries  is  corroborative  of  the  truth  of  their  traditions  that  they 
are  the  descendants  of  the  lost  Englishmen  of  Roanoke. 

"In  traveling  on  foot  they  march  in  'Indian  File'  and  exhibit  a 
fondness  for  bright  red  colors.  They  unconsciously  betray  many 
other  traits  characteristic  of  Indians.  The  custom  of  raising  patches 
of  tobacco  for  their  own  use  has  been  handed  down  from  time  im- 
memorial. 

"In  building  they  exhibit  no  little  architectural  skill.  In  road  mak- 
ing they  excel.    Some  of  the  best  roads  in  North  Carolina  can  be  found 


A  Plea  for  Separate  Schools  23 

within  their  territory.  They  are  universally  hospitable  and  polite  to 
strangers.  They  are  proud  of  their  race  and  boast  of  their  English 
ancestry.     Like  their  ancestors,  they  are  friendly  to  white  men. 

"'They  never  forget  a  kindness,  an  injury,  nor  a  debt,'  said  an  old 
citizen.  'They  may  not  pay  you  when  a  debt  is  due,  but  they  seldom 
forget  an  obligation  and  are  sure  to  pay  you  after  a  time.'  " 

In  discussing  the  character  and  disposition  of  this  people 
we  quote  again  from  Dr.  Weeks'  booklet  as  follows : 

"These  Indians  are  hospitable  to  strangers  and  are  ever  ready  to  do 
a  favor  for  the  white  people.  They  show  a  fondness  for  gay  colors, 
march  in  Indian  file,  live  retired  from  highways,  never  forget  a  kind- 
ness, an  injury,  nor  a  debt.  They  are  the  best  of  friends  and  the  most 
dangerous  of  enemies.  They  are  reticent  until  their  confidence  is 
gained,  and  when  aroused  are  perfect  devils,  exhibiting  all  the  hatred, 
malice,  cunning,  and  endurance  of  their  Indian  ancestors.  At  the  same 
time  they  are  remarkably  clean  in  their  habits,  a  characteristic  not 
found  in  the  pure-blooded  Indian.  Physicians  who  practice  among 
them  say  they  never  hesitate  to  sleep  or  eat  in  the  house  of  a  Croatan." 

THEIR  POLITICAL  AND  EDUCATIONAL  HISTORY 

In  chapter  3,  of  McMillan's  Booklet,  commenting  upon  the 
political  and  educational  qualities  of  these  people,  we  quote  as 
follows : 

"From  the  close  of  the  Revolution  to  the  year  1835  they  exercised 
the  elective  franchise  equally  with  white  men,  performed  militia  duties, 
encouraged  schools  and  built  churches,  owned  slaves  and  lived  in 
comfortable  circumstances.  By  an  ordinance  of  the  North  Carolina 
State  Convention  of  1835,  the  elective  franchise  was  denied  to  all  'free 
persons  of  color'  and  afterwards  they  were  debarred  from  voting  till 
the  year  of  1868,  when  a  new  constitution  was  adopted.  After  the 
adoption  of  the  new  State  Constitution,  they  were  allowed  the  benefit 
of  public  schools,  but  having  been  classed  for  a  long  period  as  'free 
persons  of  color,'  they  were  compelled  to  patronize  schools  provided  for 
the  negro  race.  Owing  to  a  bitter  prejudice  against  negroes,  but  few 
availed  themselves  of  the  privilege,  the  greater  part  preferring  that 
their  children  should  grow  up  in  ignorance,  rather  than  they  should  be 
forced  to  association  with  a  race  which  they  hold  in  utter  contempt. 
Separate  schools  have  since  been  provided  for  their  race  by  the  Legis- 
lature of  North  Carolina,  which  by  special  act,  recognized  them  as 
Croatan  Indians. 

"After  the  year  1835  these  Indians,  who  murmured  greatly  at  the 
injustice  done  them  in  being  classed  as  'mulattoes'  or  'free  persons  of- 


24  The  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 

color'  became  suspicious  of  white  men,  and  at  first  we  found  difficulty 
in  eliciting  any  facts  relating  to  their  past  history." 

From  McPherson's  report  to  the  government,  discussing 
their  educational  facilities,  we  quote  as  follows : 

"Prior  to  1835  the  male  Croatans  exercised  the  right  of  fran- 
chise in  North  Carolina,  and  it  seemed  to  be  the  current  tradition  that 
at  least  a  few  of  the  children  attended  the  white  schools,  wherever 
schools  for  the  whites  had  been  established  in  Indian  settlements ;  but 
for  the  most  part  they  were  compelled  to  attend  'subscription'  schools 
organized  and  conducted  by  themselves.  By  clause  3,  section  3,  of  the 
amendment  to  the  constitution  of  1835,  the  Croatans  lost  the  right  of 
franchise,  and  from  that  date  until  the  adoption  of  the  constitution  of 
1868  they  were  regarded  and  treated  as  'free  persons  of  color'  which 
practically  meant  free  negroes,  and  during  this  period  they  were  not 
permitted  to  attend  the  schools  for  whites ;  there  were  practically  no 
educational  facilities  open  to  the  Indians  at  this  time.  There  were 
doubtless  some  subscription  schools,  but  they  must  have  been  of  the 
poorest  sort. 

"Between  1868  and  1885  efforts  were  made  to  compel  the  Indians 
to  attend  the  negro  schools,  but  they  persistently  refused  to  do  this, 
preferring  to  grow  up  in  ignorance  rather  than  to  attend  the  colored 
schools.  It  would  be  more  accurate  to  say  that  parents  would  not 
permit  their  children  to  attend  the  negro  schools,  preferring  rather  that 
they  should  grow  up  in  ignorance.  The  children  raised  to  manhood 
and  womanhood  are  the  most  densely  ignorant  of  any  of  these  people. 

"Prior  to  the  adoption  of  certain  amenadments  to  the  constitution 
on  the  second  Monday  of  November,  1835,  the  Croatan  Indians  voted 
and  otherwise  enjoyed  all  the  rights  and  privileges  of  the  elective 
franchise  for  State  officials ;  but  clause  3,  section  3,  of  the  amendments 
adopted  on  said  date  provided  that  no  free  negro,  free  mulattoe,  or 
free  person  of  mixed  blood,  descended  from  negro  ancestors  to  the 
fourth  generation  inclusive  (though  one  ancestor  of  each  generation 
may  have  been  a  white  person)  shall  vote  for  members  of  the  senate  or 
house  of  commons.  Under  this  clause  they  were  subsequently  denied 
the  right  of  franchise." 

Section  7,  Chapter  68,  of  the  Acts  of  the  General  Assem- 
bly of  1854,  provides  that  all  marriages  since  the  8th  day  of 
January,  1839,  and  all  marriages  in  the  future  between  a  white 
person  and  a  free  negro  or  free  person  of  color,  to  the  third 
generation,  shall  be  void.  It  was  held  that  the  term  "or  free 
person  of  color"  applied  to  the  Croatans,  but  notwithstanding 


A  PeEa  for  Separate  Schools  25 

this  prohibition,  I  understand  that  occasionally  marriages  be- 
tween the  Indians  and  white  persons  occurred.  I  was  unable 
to  ascertain  whether  or  not  any  such  marriages  had  been  de- 
clared void. 

An  amendment  to  the  constitution  of  North  Carolina  in 
1857  provides  that  every  free  white  man  of  the  age  of  21  years, 
being  a  native  or  naturalized  citizen  of  the  United  States  and 
who  has  been  an  inhabitant  of  the  State  for  12  months  im- 
mediately preceding  the  day  of  any  election,  and  shall  have 
paid  public  taxes,  shall  be  entitled  to  vote  for  a  member  of 
senate  for  the  district  in  which  he  resides. 

Section  1  of  Article  VI  of  the  Constitution  of  1868  pro- 
vides that  every  male  person  born  in  the  United  States,  and 
every  male  person  who  has  been  naturalized,  21  years  of  age, 
and  possessing  the  qualifications  set  out  in  said  article,  shall 
be  entitled  to  vote  at  any  election  by  the  people  in  the  State, 
except  as  therein  otherwise  provided.  After  the  adoption  of 
the  Constitution  of  1868  the  right  of  franchise  was  restored  to 
the  Croatans. 

In  the  case  of  State  v.  Manuel  (20  N.  C.  144),  Justice 
Gaston  held :  "Upon  the  revolution  no  other  change  took 
place  in  the  laws  of  North  Carolina  than  was  consequent  upon 
the  transition  from  a  colony  dependent  upon  a  European  King 
to  a  free  and  Sovereign  State.  Slaves  manumitted  here  became 
freemen,  and  therefore  if  born  within  North  Carolina  are  citi- 
zens of  North  Carolina,  and  all  free  persons  born  within  the 
State  are  born  citizens  of  the  State." 

Under  this  decision,  which  was  subsequent  to  the  Constitu- 
tion of  1835,  which  deprived  free  negroes  and  free  mulattoes 
of  the  right  to  vote,  "free  persons  of  color"  (the  Croatan  In- 
dians) were  not  included  and  it  seems  that  they  should  not 
have  been  denied  the  right  of  suffrage. 

Section  1  of  Chapter  51,  Laws  of  1885,  provides  that  the 
Indians  of  Robeson  County  and  their  descendants  shall  here- 
after "be  designated  and  known  as  the  Croatan  Indians."  It 
should  be  noted  that  the  act  does  not  declare  that  they  are 


26  The  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 

Croatan  Indians,  but  merely  designates  or  names  them  Croa- 
tans,  by  which  name  they  shall  thereafter  be  known. 

Section  2  of  the  act  provides  that  said  Indians  and  their 
descendants  shall  have  separate  schools  for  their  children, 
school  -committees  for  their  own  race  and  color,  and  shall  be 
allowed  to  select  teachers  of  their  own  choice,  subject  to  the 
same  rules  and  regulations  that  are  applicable,  under  the  gen- 
eral school  law.  The  remaining  sections  of  the  act  provide  for 
putting  the  schools  into  operation  under  the  general  laws  ap- 
plicable to  free  schools  within  the  State.  Prior  to  this  enact- 
ment the  Indians  had  no  separate  schools  for  the  education 
of  their  children.  Efforts  had  been  made  to  compel  them  to 
attend  the  schools  established  for  the  negro  population,  but 
they  steadfastly  resisted  such  efforts  and  absolutely  declined 
to  attend  the  colored  schools. 

It  seems  to  be  borne  out  by  historical  research  that  these 
Indians  fought  in  the  Continental  ranks  during  the  Revolu- 
tionary War.  Hon.  A.  W.  McLean,  of  Lumberton,  N.  C,  has 
prepared  an  exhaustive  article  on  the  history  of  these  Indians, 
which  he  furnished  to  the  government  and  is  included  in  Mc- 
Pherson's  report,  and  from  which  we  copy  as  follows : 

"After  the  war,  feeling  against  the  local  Tories  ran  so  high  that 
they  were  discriminated  against  and  severe  tests  of  loyalty  were  ap- 
plied. There  seems  to  have  been  no  feeling  against  these  Indians,  for 
although  not  white  they  were  allowed  to  vote.  They  voted  until 
1835,  when  the  constitution  was  changed  by  the  insertion  of  the 
word  'white.' 

"Had  they  been  of  the  Tory  element  they  would  not  have  been 
allowed  the  right  of  suffrage,  because  the  feeling  against  the  Tories 
was  very  bitter,  especially  in  that  region  where  they  lived. 

"During  the  War  of  1812  they  were  enrolled  in  the  militia. 

"Up  to  1835  these  Indians  were  entitled  to  vote,  and  some  of  them 
owned  slaves.  A  number  of  them  appear  as  heads  of  families  in  the 
United  States  census  of  1790. 

"After  1835  they  were  allowed  to  vote  under  the  reconstruction  acts, 
and  under  the  constitution  adopted  in  1868,  and  were  entitled  to  attend 
the  negro  schools,  but  not  the  schools  for  the  whites.  But  they  refused 
absolutely  to  attend  the  negro  schools,  and  thus  were  debarred  from 
school  privileges. 

"Attention  was  drawn  to  their  peculiar  social  status,  and  as  they 


A  Plea  for  Separate;  Schools  27 

were  undoubtedly  of  Indian  extraction,  Hon.  Hamilton  McMillan,  who 
inquired  into  their  history,  reached  the  conclusion  that  they  were  de- 
scended from  the  Indians  on  Croatan  Sound  and  derived  their  white 
blood  from  the  Lost  Colony  of  1587.  This  idea  was  based  on  their 
partly  civilized  condition  when  first  observed  by  the  early  settlers  of 
that  region  about  1730.  Under  that  impression  the  Legislature  of  1885 
provided  separate  common  schools  for  them  under  the  name  of  the 
'Croatan  Indians.' 

"But  whatever  the  origin  of  the  Indians  of  this  community  was,  it 
is  certain  that  from  the  first  settlement  they  have  been  separated  from 
the  other  inhabitants  of  that  region,  and  are  of  Indian  descent,  with 
Indian  characteristics,  with  complexion,  features,  and  hair  of  the 
Indian  race,  and  are  now  borne  on  the  census  rolls  as  Indians." 

It  appears  from  the  North  Carolina  State  records  that  the 
following  Indians  received  a  pension  from  the  government  for 
services  in  the  Revolutionary  War :  John  Brooks,  James 
Brooks,  Berry  Hunt,  Thomas  Jacobs,  Michael  Revells,  Richard 
Bell,  Samuel  Bell,  Primus  Jacobs,  Thomas  Cummings,  and 
John  Hammond.  These  pensions  were  granted  under  the 
Federal  Statutes  of  1818  and  1832. 

first  separate;  schools  for  croatans 

February  10,  1885,  the  General  Assembly  of  North  Caro- 
lina provided  by  law  for  separate  schools  for  the  Croatan  In- 
dians of  North  Carolina.     This  act  contained  the  following: 

"Whereas,  the  Indians  now  living  in  Robeson  County  claim  to  be 
descendants  of  a  friendly  tribe  who  once  resided  in  eastern  North 
Carolina,  on  the  Roanoke  River,  known  as  the  Croatan  Indians,  there- 
fore the  General  Assembly  of  North  Carolina  do  enact: 

"Sec.  1.  That  the  said  Indians  and  their  descendants  shall  here- 
after be  designated  and  known  as  the  'Croatan  Indians.' 

The  provisions  for  separate  schools  follow  in  the  act. 

March  7,  1887,  the  General  Assembly  of  North  Carolina 
established  the  Croatan  Normal  School  in  Robeson  County  for 
the  Croatan  Indians,  and  February  2,  1889,  the  same  body  en- 
acted that  all  children  of  the  negro  race  to  the  fourth  genera- 
tion should  be  excluded  from  the  Croatan  separate  Indian 
schools.    The  Croatan  Normal  School  is  at  Pembroke. 


28  The  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 

marriage  with  negroes  forbidden 

Section  1,  Chapter  254,  of  the  Laws  of  1887,  amends  sec- 
tion 1810  of  the  Code  of  North  Carolina  by  adding  thereto 
the  words : 

"That  all  marriages  between  an  Indian  and  a  negro,  or  between  an 
Indian  and  a  person  of  negro  descent  to  the  third  generation,  inclusive, 
shall  be  utterly  void ;  provided  that  this  act  shall  apply  only  to  the 
Croatan  Indians." 

SEPARATE  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  COUNTIES 

Section  1,  Chapter  488,  of  the  Laws  of  1889,  provides  that 
the  Croatan  Indians  of  Richmond  County  and  their  descend- 
ants shall  be  entitled  to  the  same  school  privileges  and  benefits 
as  are  the  Croatan  Indians  of  Robeson  County. 

Section  1,  Chapter  60,  of  the  Laws  of  1889,  amends  Section 
2  of  the  Laws  of  1885  by  adding  after  the  word  "Law"  in  the 
last  line  of  said  section  the  words :  "And  there  shall  be  ex- 
cluded from  such  separate  schools  for  the  said  Croatan  In- 
dians all  children  of  the  negro  race  to  the  fourth  generation." 

Chapter  215  of  the  Laws  of  1911,  provide  that  the  Board 
of  Directors  of  the  Insane  at  Raleigh  be  authorized  to  provide 
and  set  apart  at  the  said  hospital,  suitable  apartments  and 
wards  for  the  accommodation  of  any  of  these  Indians  now 
located  in  Robeson  County. 

The  "Grandfather  Clause"  of  the  Constitution  of  North 
Carolina,  which  denies  the  right  of  franchise  to  those  who  are 
not  able  to  read  and  write  any  section  of  the  constitution  in 
the  English  language  has  been  held  not  to  apply  to  these  In- 
dians for  the  reason  that  they  or  their  ancestors  prior  to  1867, 
were  entitled  to  vote  under  the  laws  of  the  State.  Consequently, 
the  Indians  of  Robeson  County,  Richmond,  Cumberland, 
Sampson  and  other  adjoining  counties,  are  entitled  to  vote  and 
have  been  voting  under  the  laws  of  the  State  and  amended 
constitution,  a  right  which  has  been  denied  the  negroes. 

The  Croatan  Indians,  a  majority  of  whom  live  in  Robeson 
County,  have  had  special  recognition  in  Robeson  County  by 
the  State  Legislature  since  1885.     They  were  first  recognized 


A  Plea  for  Separate;  Schools  29 

as  Croatan  Indians.  They  were  afterwards  designated  in  leg- 
islative enactments  as  Indians  of  Robeson  County.  A  recent 
legislative  enactment  referred  to  them  as  Cherokee  Indians 
of  Robeson  County ;  but  however,  they  may  be  designated  by 
the  legislative  enactment,  they  are  the  same  people  known  as 
Croatan  Indians.  Since  1885  the  State  of  North  Carolina  has 
wisely  provided  separate  school. facilities  for  this  race  of  peo- 
ple, separate  and  apart  from  the  white  race  and  colored  race, 
and  they  have  received  their  pro  rata  proportion  of  the  school 
funds,  together  with  the  white  race  and  colored  race. 

The  State  has  provided  an  appropriation  of  $2,500.00  for 
the  support  of  a  Normal  School  for  teachers  for  these  Indians, 
and  Chapter  191  of  the  Public  Laws  of  1913  provides  for  an 
additional  appropriation  of  $500.00  for  this  Normal  School. 

Sections  4168-9-70-71  of  the  School  Law  of  North  Caro- 
lina, as  appears  in  the  Revisal  of  1905,  under  the  chapter  en- 
titled "Croatan  Indians,"  are  as  follows : 

"Sec.  4168.  "The  persons  residing  in  Robeson  and  Richmond  coun- 
ties supposed  to  be  descendants  of  a  friendly  tribe  once  residing  in  the 
eastern  portion  of  this  State  known  as  the  Croatan  Indians,  and  their 
descendants,  shall  be  known  and  designated  as  the  Croatan  Indians 
and  they  shall  have  separate  schools  for  their  children,  school  commit- 
tees of  their  own  race  and  color,  and  shall  be  allowed  to  select  teachers 
of  their  own  choice,  subject  to  the  same  rules  and  regulations  as  are 
applicable  to  all  teachers  in  the  general  school  law,  and  there  shall  be 
excluded  from  such  separate  schools  for  the  Croatan  Indians  all  chil- 
dren of  the  negro  race  to  the  fourth  generation. 

"Sec.  4169.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  County  Board  of  Education 
to  see  that  the  next  preceding  section  is  carried  into  effect,  and  shall  for 
that  purpose  have  the  census  taken  of  all  the  children  of  such  Indians 
and  their  descendants  between  the  ages  of  six  and  twenty-one,  and 
proceed  to  establish  suitable  school  districts  as  shall  be  necessary  for 
their  convenience  and  take  all  such  other  and  further  steps  as  may  be 
necessary  for  the  purpose  of  carrying  such  section  into  effect.  And 
where  any  children,  descendants  of  such  Indians,  shall  reside  in  any 
district  in  such  counties  of  Robeson  and  Richmond  in  which  there  are 
no  separate  schools  provided  for  their  race  they  shall  have  the  right  to 
attend  any  of  the  public  schools  in  the  county  provided  for  their  race, 
and  their  share  of  the  public  school  fund  shall  be  appropriated  to  their 
education  upon  the  certificate  of  the  school  committee  in  the  district 


30  The  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 

in  which  they  reside,  stating  that  they  are  entitled  to  attend  such 
public  schools. 

"Sec.  4170.  The  Treasurer  of  the  County  School  Fund  and  other 
proper  authorities  whose  duties  it  is  to  collect,  keep  and  apportion  the 
school  fund,  shall  procure  from  the  County  Board  of  Education  the 
number -of  children  in  the  county  between  the  ages  of  six  and  twenty- 
6ne,  belonging  to  such  Indian  race,  and  shall  set  apart  and  keep  sep- 
arate their  pro  rata  share  of  the  school  funds,  which  shall  be  paid  out 
upon  the  same  rules  in  every  respect  as  are  provided  in  the  general 
school  law  and  in  the  next  preceding  section. 

"Sec.  4171.  The  general  public  school  law  shall  be  applicable  in  all 
respects  to  such  separate  schools  for  the  Croatan  Indians,  except  where 
such  general  law  is  repugnant  to  these  special  provisions  relating  to 
such  schools ;  and  these  special  provisions  for  separate  schools  for 
Croatan  Indians  shall  apply  only  to  the  counties  of  Robeson  and 
Richmond." 

Section  4086  of  the  School  Law  as  appears  in  the  Revisal 
under  the  chapter  entitled,  "Public  Schools,"  among  other 
things  provides  for  the  descendants  of  the  Croatan  Indians 
now  living  in  Richmond  and  Robeson  counties  that  they  shall 
have  separate  schools  for  their  children,  as  hereinafter  pro- 
vided in  this  chapter. 

Chapter  22  of  the  Public  Local  Laws  of  1913,  amends  the 
school  law,  sections  4168  to  4171,  by  adding  "the  Indians  of 
Person  County ;"  giving  them  the  same  separate  schools  as  the 
Indians  of  Robeson  and  Richmond  counties. 

Chapter  499  of  the  Public  Laws  of  1907  provides  separate 
schools  for  the  Croatan  Indians  in  the  county  of  Cumberland, 
where  the  census  shows  as  many  as  35  children  of  school  age. 

Chapter  720  of  the  Public  Laws  of  1909  provides  for  sep- 
arate schools  for  the  white,  the  colored  and  the  Indians  in 
Scotland  County.  And  further  provides  that  any  child  of 
negro  blood  shall  not  attend  the  Indian  schools  for  the  Croa- 
tans  in  Scotland  County. 

The  Revisal  of  1905,  Section  2083,  among  other  things, 
provides  that  the  marriages  between  the  Croatan  Indians  and 
the  negro,  or  between  a  Croatan  Indian  and  a  person  of  negro 
descent,  to  the  third  generation,  shall  be  void. 


A  Plea  for  Separate  Schools  31 

SEPARATE  SCHOOLS  EOR  CROATAN  INDIANS  IN   SAMPSON 

Chapter  263  of  the  Public  Local  Laws  of  1911  established 
separate  schools  for  the  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County, 
simply  by  adding  the  word  Sampson  after  the  word  Richmond 
and  Robeson,  in  the  school  laws  as  is  set  out  in  the  Revisal 
(Sec.  4168  to  4171). 

Chapter  100  of  the  Public  Local  Laws  of  1913  repealed 
chapter  263  of  the  Public  Local  Laws  of  1911,  thereby  repeal- 
ing the  provision  for  separate  school  facilities  for  the  Croatan 
Indians  of  Sampson  County. 

After  the  passage  of  the  acts  of  1911,  giving  the  Croatan 
Indians  of  Sampson  County  separate  schools,  the  County 
Board  of  Education  put  into  operation  the  provisions  of  that 
act  and  during  the  years  of  1911  and  1912  the  Indians  of 
Sampson  County  were  provided  a  separate  school  from  the 
other  races,  and  were  given  their  proper  proportion  of  the 
school  funds. 

The  Indians  built,  chiefly  at  their  own  expense,  a  suitable 
and  commodious  school  house  in  Herrings  Township,  Samp- 
son County,  in  the  center  of  the  Indian  settlement,  and  em- 
ployed a  teacher  of  their  own  race,  and  had  a  separate  church 
and  pastor  from  the  other  races  where  they  held  then  and 
continue  to  hold  separate  religious  services  for  these  Indians. 

WHY  THE  INDIAN   SCHOOL  IN   SAMPSON   WAS  REPEALED 

This  was  the  first  recognition  which  these  Indians  had  re- 
ceived by  the  county  and  State,  providing  separate  school  fa- 
cilities for  their  children,  and  perhaps  would  have  been  con- 
tinued without  any  repeal  of  the  act,  except  for  the  fact  that 
the  children  of  one  of  these  Indians,  who  had  married  a  mu- 
latto woman,  were  sent  to  this  school  and  were  by  the  teacher 
and  trustees  excluded  on  the  ground  that  these  children  con- 
tained negro  blood  to  the  prohibitive  degree. 

An  examination  of  the  school  law  for  the  counties  of  Rich- 
mond, Robeson,  Scotland  and  Person  shows  that  this  family 
of  mixed  blood  children  would  be  excluded  from  attending 
the  Indian  schools  in  these  counties,  and  the  act  creating  the 


32  The  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 

Indian  school  for  Sampson  County  places  Sampson  County 
under  the  same  law  governing  the  Indian  schools  of  Robeson 
and  Richmond  counties. 

Therefore  these  particular  families  of  children  of  mixed 
blood  would  properly  be  excluded  from  the  Indian  schools  of 
Sampson  County.  But  the  fact  that  they  were  excluded  cre- 
ated confusion  and  friction  in  this  Indian  school,  annoyance  to 
the  County  Board  of  Education,  and  was  the  chief  cause  which 
led  to  its  repeal  by  the  legislature  of  1913. 

INDIAN  TAX   PAYERS  IN   SAMPSON   COUNTY 

After  the  passage  of  the  Act  of  1911  recognizing  the  In- 
dians of  Sampson  County,  and  giving  them  the  same  recog- 
nition in  Sampson  County  as  the  Indians  in  Robeson  and  ad- 
joining counties,  the  property  and  polls  of  the  Indians  of  Samp- 
son County  were  listed  and  abstracted  on  the  tax  oooks,  sep- 
arate from  the  white  and  colored.  The  tax  abstracts  and  the 
tax  books  of  Sampson  County  for  the  year  of  1911  and  1912 
show  the  following  tax  payers  in  Sampson  County  in  the  re- 
spective townships  set  out  below,  to-wit : 

Herrings  Township 

Isham  Ammons  Emmet  Jacobs 

M.  L.  Brewington  G.  W.  McLean 

C.  D.  Brewington  J.  M.  West 

Thomas  Jones  Albert  Jacobs 

C.  O.  Jacobs  R.  M.  Williams 

Robbin  Jacobs  Jno.   A.   Brewington 

J.  S.  Strickland  W.  B.  Brewington 

Myrtle  Goodman  J.  R.  Jones 

Enoch  Jacobs  T.  J.  Jacobs 

G.  B.  Brewington  R.  M.  Williams 

H.  A.  Brewington  R.  J.  Jacobs 

J.  H.  Brewington  D.  W.  Williams 
Martha  Jones 

Honeycutts  Township 
Calvin  Ammons  Lucy  Goodman 

J.  S.  Brewington  Jesse  Jacobs 

Jonathan    Goodman  D.  W.  Williams 

R.  H.  Jacobs  J.  A.  Brewington 

R.  A.  Jackson  Harley  Goodman 


A  Plea  for  Separate;  Schools  33 

James  Butler  W.  E.  Goodman 

K.  J.  Ammons  Dolphus  Jacobs 

C.   A.   Brewington 

South  Clinton  Township 
B.  J.  Faircloth  Percy  Simmons 

J.  B.  Simmons  J.  G.  Simmons 

Wm.   Simmons,   Sr.      •  C.   C.   Simmons 

J.  W.  Faircloth  W.  M.  Simmons,  Jr. 

Dismal  Township 
E.  R.  Brewington  Enoch  Maynor,  Jr. 

W.  L.  Bledsole  *  Gus  Robinson 

Enoch  Manuel,  or  Emanuel         J.  H.  Bledsole 
W.  J.  Bledsole  H.  J.  Jones 

Matthew  Burnette  Jonah  Manuel 

A  few  of  the  above  names  were  forced  off  of  the  tax  list  of  1912 
by  these  Indians  as  they  were  known  to  contain  negro  blood  and  not 
entitled  to  be  classed  as  Indians. 

It  will  be  seen  from  the  above  list  that  there  are  sixty-two 
Indian  tax  payers  listed  in  Sampson  County,  for  the  years 
named.  Wherever  these  Indians  are  found  in  the  County  it 
will  be  noted  that  they  are  living  in  groups  and  in  certain  sec- 
tions of  the  county.  There  are  other  Indians  in  small  num- 
bers scattered  here  and  there  in  other  townships  in  the  county, 
whose  names  do  not  appear  on  the  tax  list  separate  from  other 
i  aces,  but  they  are  not  strong  enough  in  numbers  in  these  lo- 
calities to  assert  their  racial  status  because  they  realize  that  it 
militated  against  them  in  social  and  other  ways  to  do  so,  and 
therefore  in  localities  where  there  are  few  of  them  they  do 
not  desire  to  alienate  the  other  races  in  attempting  to  assert 
their  rights  as  people  of  Indian  descent. 

EASILY  RECOGNIZED  AS  INDIANS 

The  above  list  of  Indians  will  be  readily  recognized  from 
their  general  appearance,  their  intelligence,  the  color  of  their 
eyes,  their  skin,  their  straight  black  hair,  their  facial  features, 
their  erect  carriage,  their  clannishness,  their  general  habits  and 
demeanor,  that  they  are  neither  white  people  nor  negroes. 
They  do  not  resemble  the  negroes  or  mulattoes,  in  that  their 


34  The;  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 

hair  is  perfectly  straight.  They  have  high  cheek  bones,  they 
do  not  have  fiat  noses,  or  thick  lips.  Many  of  them  have  grey 
eyes,  and  often  have  rose  tints  on  their  cheeks.  They  are 
usually  tall  and  erect,  they  are  cleanly  in  their  habits  and  mode 
of  living.  They  are  usually  land  owners,  and  more  thrifty  and 
industrious.  They  live  and  congregate  in  certain  localities, 
and  are  clannish,  and  in  numerous  ways  show  the  Indian  traits. 

they  were;  never  slaves 

These  people  were  never  slaves  and  from  the  memory  of 
the  oldest  white  inhabitants  have  always  been  freemen.  There 
is  no  record  that  they  ever  purchased  their  freedom  from 
former  white  men.  They  were  never  born  nor  sold  into 
slavery;  they  were  found  living  in  this  country  as  free  and 
separate  people  as  long  ago  as  we  have  any  record  of  them.  In 
a  few  instances  there  has  been  some  mixture  of  white  and 
negro  blood  in  them.  The  whites  and  the  negroes  have  not 
been  so  careful  in  guarding  against  the  amalgamation  of  those 
two  races  as  have  these  Indians,  to  preserve  intact  and  prevent 
their  Indian  blood  from  mixture  with  the  other  two  races.  In 
a  few  instances  these  Indians  have  intermarried  with  mulat- 
toes,  but  such  intermarriages  have  been  discouraged  among 
them,  and  in  most  cases,  the  parties  to  such  marriages  have 
been  ostracised  socially  from  the  churches  and  schools  of  these 
Indians. 

FORMERLY  THEY  WERE  ERRONEOUSLY  CLASSED  AS  FREE  NEGROES 

Since  1868,  the  white  people  in  Sampson  County,  as  a  rule, 
have  classed  these  Indians  with  the  negroes  and  refused  to 
recognize  them  except  as  negroes.  They  have  consequently 
been  forced,  in  a  measure,  with  t"he  negro  race,  but  they  have 
steadfastly  refused  to  be  classed  with  the  negroes.  They  have 
refused  to  attend  the  churches  and  the  schools  of  the  negroes 
or  to  co-mingle  with  them  on  terms  of  social  equality.  It  is 
marvellous  that  they  have  been  able  to  maintain  their  racial 
status  so  well  under  the  adverse  social  and  political  status 
which  has  been  forced  upon  them  by  the  white  people.  It 
shows  that  they  have  an  ambition  to  improve  their  condition 


A  Plea  for  Separate;  Schools  35 

and  to  build  themselves  upward,  morally-,  socially,  and  educa- 
tionally, rather  than  to  be  pulled  down  to  a  level  with  the  in- 
ferior race,  with  whom  they  would  be  socially  classed.  It  is 
nothing-  but  common  justice  to  these  people  that  the  white 
race,  which  has  done  so  much  and  is  now  endeavoring  to  do 
still  more,  for  the  education  and  material  progress  and  wel- 
fare of  all  the  people  of  the  State,  of  every  race,  that  the 
efforts  of  these  Indians  to  build  up  and  maintain  their  superior 
social  and  intellectual  status  from  the  negro  race,  should  be 
encouraged  in  every  proper  way,  as  they  have  been  encouraged 
and  recognized  in  several  other  counties  of  the  State,  in  which 
they  are  less  numerous.  It  will  make  them  better  citizens  and 
at  no  substantial  extra  cost  to  the  white  and  colored  race,  for 
them  to  have  their  separate  schools  and  churches.  They  will 
feel  that  they  have  not  been  discriminated  against  and  that 
they  have  been  treated  with  the  same  fairness  and  considera- 
tion that  their  people  of  the  same  race  and  blood  are  given  in 
adjoining  counties. 

THE  LAWS  OF  THL  STATE  RECOGNIZE  THEM  AS  A  SEPARATE  RACE 

Under  the  law  of  the  State  they  are  not  permitted  to  marry 
with  the  white  race,  and  they  are  not  permitted  to  intermarry 
with  the  colored  race,  and  by  the  general  law  of  the  State  such 
marriages  are  declared  absolutely  void.  They  are  not  required 
or  permitted  to  be  confined,  when  insane,  to  the  colored  insane 
asylum,  but  separate  apartments  are  provided  in  the  white 
insane  asylum  at  Raleigh.  In  every  county  in  the  State  except 
Sampson,  they  are  recognized  and  provided  for  as  a  separate 
and  distinct  race  and  people  from  the  whites  and  negroes.  The 
National  Government  has  been  more  generous  towards  the  In- 
dians than  any  other  race  of  people.  They  have  been  recog- 
nized and  treated  as  the  wards  of  the  government,  but  until 
recent  years  the  National  Government  did  not  know  of  the 
existence  of  these  people  in  this  section  of  the  State,  and  have 
made  no  provision  for  them.  The  Legislature  of  this  state  has 
made  generous  provision  for  their  segregation,  and  education 
in  other  counties  of  the  state,  and  would  willingly  do  so  for 


36  The  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 

Sampson  County  if  requested  to  do  so  by  the  people  of  this 
county. 

STATE   PROVIDES    COLLEGES   FOR    WHITES   AND    NEGROES   BUT    NOT 

FOR   INDIANS 

The  State  of  North  Carolina  has  provided  not  only  free 
public  schools  for  the  white  race,  and  maintain  the  State 
University  and  A.  &  M.  College  at  Raleigh,  but  a  normal  school 
for  girls  at  Greensboro  and  a  normal  at  Greenville,  and  be- 
sides numerous  other  schools  for  the  whites  which  receive 
State  aid.  The  colored  children  are  provided  free  public 
schools  and  besides  there  is  provided  for  their  higher  educa- 
tion an  A.  &  M.  College  at  Greensboro,  and  a  Normal  School 
at  Elizabeth  City  and  Fayetteville,  a  negro  University  at 
Raleigh,  and  other  State  institutions  at  public  expense. 

It  will  be  seen  from  the  above  what  ample  provisions  are 
made  for  academic  and  collegiate  education  for  the  white  and 
colored  by  the  tax  payers  of  the  State.  Then  is  it  not  simple 
justice  to  these  Indians,  who  are  likewise  citizens  and  tax  pay- 
ers of  the  State,  paying  their  taxes  on  property  and  polls,  and 
also  special  school  tax  in  local  tax  districts,  and  performing 
road  duties  and  other  public  service,  living  quietly  and  peace- 
ably as  law  abiding  citizens  of  this  State,  that  they  should  have 
at  least  their  pro  rata  part  of  the  school  tax  in  order  that  they 
might  train  and  educate  their  own  children  separate  from  the 
negroes,  with  whom  they  refuse  to  associate  and  with  whom 
they  are  forbidden  by  law  to  marry.  They  have  their  own 
school  histories  which  are  not  taught  in  the  public  schools  of 
the  white  or  colored,  and  are  only  taught  in  the  Indian  schools. 

THE  INDIANS  ARE  JUSTLY  PROUD  OF  THEIR  HISTORY 

The  history  of  the  Indians  of  North  Carolina  from  the  first 
advent  of  the  white  men  on  our  coast  is  not  an  inglorious  rec- 
ord, but  one  which  in  many  respects  is  calculated  to  make  the 
Indians  of  today  proud  of  their  race  and  people. 

In  John  Lawson's  History  of  North  Carolina,  dated  1718, 
he  discusses  the   Indians   he   found   in   North   Carolina   with 


A  Plea  for  Separate  Schools  37 

whom  he  lived  and  travelled.     We  quote  the  following  from 
his  book: 

"We  have  no  disciplined  men  in  Europe,  but  what  have  at  one  time 
or  other,  been  branded  with  mutining,  and  murmuring  against  their 
chiefs.  These  savages  are  never  found  guilty  of  that  great  crime  in  a 
soldier.  I  challenge  all  mankind  to  tell  me  one  instance  of  it;  besides 
they  never  prove  Traitors  to  their  native  country,  but  rather  chuse 
death  than  partake  and  side  with  the  enemy. 

"They  naturally  possess  the  righteous  man's  gift;  they  are  patient 
under  all  afflictions,  and  have  a  great  many  other  natural  virtues,  which 
I  have  slightly  touched  throughout  the  account  of  these  savages. 

"They  are  really  better  to  us  than  we  are  to  them ;  they  always 
give  us  victuals  at  their  quarters,  and  take  care  we  are  armed  against 
hunger  and  thirst;  we  do  not  so  by  them,  (generally  speaking)  but 
let  them  walk  by  our  doorway  hungry,  and  do  not  often  relieve  them. 
We  look  upon  them  with  scorn  and  disdain  and  think  them  little  better 
than  beasts  in  Humane  shape,  though  if  well  examined,  we  shall  find 
that,  for  all  our  religion  and  education,  we  possess  more  moral  de- 
formities and  evils  than  these  savages  do,  or  are  acquainted  withal." 

BETTER  EDUCATIONAL  FACILITIES   SHOULD  BE   PROVIDED 

Special  Indian  Agent  O.  M.  McPherson,  in  his  report  to 
the  government  on  the  Croatan  Indians,  made  in  1914,  speaks 
of  the  character  and  needs  of  these  Croatan  Indians  as  follows  : 

"In  addition  to  the  common  or  district  schools  and  the  normal 
schools  for  both  white  and  colored  children,  the  State  of  North  Caro- 
lina has  provided  the  youth  of  both  these  races  with  institutions  of 
learning  imparting  instruction  in  agriculture  and  mechanic  trades,  and 
to  some  extent  in  domestic  science ;  but  there  are  no  such  schools  of 
higher  instruction  open  to  these  Indians.  As  I  understand  the  matter 
they  are  prohibited  by  law  from  attending  these  higher  institutions 
established  for  the  education  of  white  and  colored  youth.  It  is  con- 
jectured that  the  very  limited  number  of  these  Indians,  compared 
with  the  white  and  colored  population,  accounts  for  this  discrimination. 

"I  might  say  here  that  in  my  judgment,  the  children  of  these  In- 
dians, as  a  rule,  are  exceedingly  bright,  quick  to  learn  from  books,  as 
well  as  from  example,  and  are  very  eager  to  obtain  further  educational 
advantages  than  are  now  open  to  them.  If  the  reverse  were  true,  there 
would  be  little  encouragement  to  furnish  them  with  higher  institutions 
of  learning  when  they  were  incapable  of  taking  advantage  of  their 
present  educational  facilities  or  indifferent  about  obtaining  a  higher 
education  ;  but  I  believe  the  more  ambitious  of  their  youth  to  be  eager 
to  attend  higher  institutions  of  learning  than  those  now  provided. 


38  The  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 

"While  these  Indians  are  essentially  an  agricultural  people,  I  believe 
them  to  be  as  capable  of  learning  the  mechanical  trades  as  the  average 
youth." 

Hon  A.  S.  McLean,  of  Lumberton,  N.  C,  in  his  historical 
sketch  of  '.these  Indians,  and  in  discussing  their  educational  ad- 
vantages, says : 

"Under  the  laws  of  North  Carolina,  which  provide  for  the  absolute 
separation  of  the  races,  they  are  not  entitled  to  attend  the  University 
for  men,  the  state  normal  and  industrial  college  for  women  or  the 
agricultural  and  mechanical  college  for  either  the  white  or  negro  races. 
They  are  therefore  entirely  without  the  facilities  for  industrial  or 
higher  academic  education." 

INDIAN   TAXES   IN    SAMPSON    WILE   SUPPORT   AN   INDIAN    SCHOOL 

After  the  Legislature  of  1911  provided  for  separate  schools 
for  the  Indians  of  Sampson  County,  the  County  Board  of 
Education  established  an  Indian  school  in  Herrings  Township. 
They  were  given  their  pro  rata  of  the  appropriation  from  the 
school  fund.  It  will  be  seen  above,  in  the  list  of  tax  payers  in 
Herrings  Township,  that  there  were  twenty-seven  Indian  tax 
payers  in  Herrings  Township.  The  census  of  the  Indian 
school  children  for  1912,  according  to  the  record  in  the  office 
of  the  County  Superintendent  of  Sampson  County,  shows  27 
male  and  20  female  Indian  children  in  that  Indian  school  dis- 
trict. And  the  records  further  show  that  every  one  of  these 
male  and  female  Indian  children  were  enrolled  as  pupils  in 
that  school.  This  is  a  very  remarkable  record,  it  could  not  be 
better,  and  is  probably  not  equalled  by  any  other  school  district 
in  the  county.  It  shows  how  keenly  these  Indians  appreciate 
this  recognition  on  the  part  of  the  county  and  State  school 
officials. 

For  the  year  1912  this  school  had  an  Indian  teacher  for 
twenty-five  dollars  per  month  and  received  eighty  days,  or 
four  months  school,  at  a  total  cost  of  one  hundred  dollars. 
The  year  1912  is  the  only  year  that  these  Indians  received  any 
separate  school  funds  for  their  Indian  school  as  the  act  was 
repealed  in  1913.  Before  1912  and  since  1912  they  have  been 
attempting  to   support  their   schools   from  their  own  private 


A  Plea  for  Separate  Schools  39 

donations.  By  reference  to  the  tax  abstracts  showing  the  In- 
dian property  and  poll  for  the  support  of  this  school,  we  find 
from  the  official  records  of  Sampson  County  that  the  Indian 
property,  real  and  personal  for  the  year  1911  was  $15,812.00. 
That  there  were  43  polls  at  $1.50  per  poll,  which  goes  to  the 
school  fund,  amounting  to  $64.50,  and  the  school  taxes  at  20 
cents  on  each  $100.00  valuation  amounted  to  $31.62,  making  a 
total  of  $96.12.  They  received  from  donations  $5.50,  making 
a  total  of  $101.62.  This  shows  that  this  Indian  school  was 
entirely  supported  by  the  taxes  on  the  polls  and  property  of 
the  Indians  of  Sampson  County,  and  was  no  burden  upon  the 
other  races.  In  addition  to  this  fund  we  should  consider  their 
pro  rata  part  of  the  fines  and  forfeitures  and  the  funds  re- 
ceived from  the  State. 

It  will  be  readily  seen  that  if  they  had  received  their  full 
pro  rata  part  of  the  school  fund  from  all  these  sources  they 
would  have  received  a  sufficient  fund  to  have  given  them  all  a 
four  months  and  prehaps  a  six  months  school,  without  any 
burden  upon  the  other  tax  payers  of  the  county. 

SAMPSON    EXCEEDS   ALL   OTHER    COUNTIES,    EXCEPT    ROBESON,    IN 
INDIAN    POLLS   AND   PROPERTY 

We  give  below  a  table  showing  the  number  of  Indian  polls 
and  valuation  of  property  listed  for  taxation  by  the  Indians 
for  the  year  1912,  in  the  counties  of  Robeson,  Scotland,  Hoke, 
Richmond,  Person  and  Sampson,  taken  from  the  Report  of 
the  State  Tax  Commission  for  1912 : 

Polls  Valuation 

Person    County    14  $    2,890 

Hoke  County   13  3.574 

Scotland  County    38  6,500 

Sampson    County    56  13,793 

Robeson  County    960  493,900 

The  county  of  Sampson  contains  a  larger  number  of  In- 
dians, and  they  list  for  taxation  more  property  than  in  any 
other  county,  except  Robeson,  yet  all  these  counties  have  pro- 
vided separate  school  facilities  for  them,  except  Sampson. 


40  The  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 

family  relationship  between  croatan  indians  of  robeson 
county  and  sampson  county 

The  State  of  North  Carolina  has  provided  separate  public 
schools  for  the  Croatans  of  Robeson  County,  yet  have  failed 
to  provide  separate  school  advantages  for  the  Croatans  of 
Sampson  County  who  are  of  the  same  race  and  blood.  The 
Croatans  of  Robeson  and  Sampson  counties  have  intermarried 
for  several  generations,  and  if  their  children  in  Robeson 
County  are  Croatans  and  are  entitled  to  separate  recognition 
by  the  State,  there  is  no  reason  why  their  children  in  Samp- 
son County  should  not  receive  the  same  recognition.  The  fol- 
lowing is  a  partial  list  of  the  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  and 
Robeson  counties  who  have  intermarried : 

Simon  Brewington  of  Sampson,  married  Sallie  Harding  of  Robeson. 

Lee  Brewington  of  Sampson,  married  Ellen  Locklear  of  Robeson. 

Lattie  Brewington  of  Sampson,  married  Ora  Cannady  of  Robeson. 

C.  D.  Brewington  of  Sampson,  married  Bessie  Chavis  of  Robeson. 

Margaret  Brewington  of  Sampson,  married  R.  F.  Locklear,  of 
Robeson. 

Martha  Brewington  of  Sampson,  married  F.  V.  Manuel  of  Robeson. 

Mary  Manuel  of  Sampson,  married  A.  S.  Locklear  of  Robeson. 

May  Lee  Manuel  of  Sampson,  married  Hassie  Jones  of  Robeson. 

James  Maynor  of  Sampson,  married  Flora  Sampson  of  Robeson. 

Willie  Maynor  of  Sampson,  married  Susan  Lowery  of  Robeson. 

Frank  Maynor  of  Sampson,  married  Mary  Locklear  of  Robeson. 

Arthur  Maynor  of  Sampson,  married  Penny  Oxendine  of  Robeson. 

Lista  Maynor  of  Sampson,  married  John  Cummings  of  Robeson. 

Dempsey  Maynor  of  Sampson,  married  Montgomery  Lowery  of 
Robeson. 

Wiley  Maynor  of  Sampson,  married  Susan  Strickland,  of  Robeson. 

Nathan  Brewington  of  Sampson,  married  Sally  Chavis  of  Robeson. 

James  R.  Thomas  of  Sampson,  married  Ira  Chavis  of  Robeson. 

Alfred  Thomas  of  Sampson,  married  Alice  Bell  of  Robeson. 

Luther  Maynor  of  Sampson,  married  Novella  Wilkins  of  Robeson. 

Stephen  Thomas  of  Sampson,  married  Beady  Jones  of  Robeson. 

Simon  Brewington  of  Sampson,  married  Reba  Jacobs  of  Robeson. 

There  are  several  families  of  Manuels  and  Jacobs  now 
living  in  Robeson  County,  who  came  from  Sampson  County 
many  years  ago.  Simon  BrewTington  has  been  living  in  Rob- 
eson County  for  thirty-five  years.  All  of  his  children  attend  the 


A  Plea  for  Separate  Schools  41 

Indian  schools.  He  is  a  brother  of  H.  A.  Brewington,  of 
Sampson  County.  Betsy  Jacobs,  a  daughter  of  Jesse  Jacobs, 
married  Robert  Maynor,  of  Robeson,  and  their  children  at- 
tend the  Croatan  schools.  Robert  Maynor's  mother  was  a 
sister  of  Basha  Brewington,  wife  of  Raeford  Brewington,  of 
Sampson  County. 

It  will  be  seen  from  the  above  that  the  Croatans  of  Samp- 
son and  Robeson  counties  have  intermarried  for  several  gen- 
erations. Their  children  in  Robeson  County  are  recognized  as 
Croatans  and  given  separate  school  advantages,  but  these  peo- 
ple of  the  same  blood  who  reside  in  Sampson  County,  are  now 
receiving  no  part  of  the  public  school  funds  although  they 
cheerfully  pay  their  school  taxes  for  that  purpose. 


42  The  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 

NEW  BETHEL  INDIAN  SCHOOL 

Herrings  Township,  Sampson  County,  N.  C. 

The  community  of  Croatans  residing  in  Herrings  Town- 
ship, on  the  waters  of  Coharie  and  its  tributaries,  petitioned 
to  the  County  Board  of  Education,  in  1910,  to  provide  a  sep- 
arate school  for  their  children  in  Herrings  and  Honeycutts 
townships.  The  School  Board  recommended  to  the  Legislature 
of  1911  separate  school  facilities  for  these  people,  and  accord- 
ingly an  act  was  passed  giving  them  the  same  separate  school 
advantages  as  the  Croatans  of  Robeson  County. 

A  school  site  was  purchased  and  a  school-house  was 
promptly  erected,  the  Croatans  paying  half  and  the  county  the 
other  half  of  the  cost  of  the  building  and  site.  Boyd  Carter, 
a  Croatan  Indian  of  ^  Robeson  County,  taught  the  first  school, 
the  county  paid  $25.00  per  month  on  his  salary  and  the  patrons 
of  the  school  the  balance. 

The  Legislature  of  1913  repealed  this  act  and  since  then 
this  school  has  been  run  as  a  private  school  by  the  Croatans  of 
that  community,  with  C.  D.  Brewington  as  their  teacher.  The 
above  cut  is  a  picture  of  the  school  house  and  of  the  school 
children  attending  this  school. 

Prior  to  1835  these  people  claim  to  have  attended  the 
schools  of  the  whites.  In  1859  they  built  a  school  for  them- 
selves, which  was  taught  by  Alvin  Manuel,  a  Croatan.  After 
the  War  they  were  given  a  public  school  in  this  community, 
but  the  effort  to  force  the  attendance  of  children  of  negro  blood 
in  this  school  brought  on  friction  and  finally  resulted  in  the 
withdrawal  of  county  support  and  disrupted  the  school. 

These  children  will  not  attend  the  negro  schools,  and  with- 
out separate  recognition  by  the  County  Board  of  Education 
will  be  deprived  entirely  of  public  school  advantages.  This 
school  has  been  closed  by  order  of  the  County  Board  of  Educa- 
tion, because  of  friction  on  account  of  children  of  negro  blood 
attempting  to  attend  the  school.  These  Croatan  children  now 
have  no  public  school  nor  private  school.     This  school  should 


NEW    BETHEL    INDIAN    SCHOOL 
Herrings  Township,   Sampson  Co.,   N.    C. 


A  Plea  for  Separate  Schools 


43 


be  opened  and  conducted  on  the  same  plan  as  the  Croatan 
schools  of  Robeson,  Richmond,  Hoke  and  other  counties,  and 
then  all  friction  will  cease,  and  harmony  be  secured. 


SHILOH  INDIAN   SUNDAY   SCHOOL 
Dismal   Township,    Sampson    County 


JONAH    MANUEL    AND    FAMILY 

Dismal    Township,    Sampson    County 

These   children   attend    Shiloh    Indian    School 


44  Th£  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 

SHILOH  INDIAN  SCHOOL 

Dismal  Township,  Sampson  County,  N.  C. 

On  July  18,  1910,  the  Croatan  Indians  in  Dismal  Town- 
ship, residing  near  South  River,  organized  "The  Shiloh  In- 
dian School  Clan,"  with  Enoch  Manuel,  Sr.,  chairman,  J.  H. 
Manuel,  general  manager,  and  W.  J.  Bedsole,  treasurer.  The 
purpose  of  this  clan  was  to  look  after  the  school  of  their  chil- 
dren, and  to  raise  funds  for  that  purpose. 

Their  first  school  was  begun  on  August  2nd,  1910,  with 
Miss  Mattie  B.  Cummings,  a  Croatan  of  Robeson  County,  as 
their  first  teacher.  She  did  excellent  work.  She  agreed  to 
teach  at  $10.00  per  month  for  two  months  and  including  her 
board  cost  the  Clan  only  $15.00  per  month.  On  September 
23d,  1910,  this  school  held  its  first  commencement.  It  was  a 
big  day  for  these  people.  Mr.  A.  S.  Locklear,  of  Robeson 
County,  a  prominent  Croatan  and  educator,  made  the  address, 
and  other  prominent  Croatans  of  Robeson  attended  and  took 
part  in  the  exercises. 

Prior  to  1911  these  Croatan  Indians  in  Dismal  Township 
ran  a  subscription  school  at  a  cost  of  from  two  to  three  dollars 
per  month  for  each  child.  Since  1911  these  people  in  order  to 
have  a  separate  school  for  their  children  have  run  a  "Com- 
pany Farm"  planted  in  cotton,  and  all  the  patrons  of  the 
school  work  the  farm,  and  the  net  profits  are  turned  over  to 
the  treasurer  of  the  School  Clan  to  run  the  Indian  school. 
The  number  of  children  in  attendance  ranged  from  fifteen  to 
twenty.  This  small  number  made  the  support  of  the  school  ex- 
pensive for  each  child,  but  they  have  not  complained  and  have 
never  asked  the  County  Board  of  Education  for  help  but  once, 
then  their  request  was  refused  and  they  did  not  apply  again. 
They  pay  their  school  taxes  each  year  and  often  special  taxes 
for  schools,  but  never  have  gotten  back  for  their  school  any 
part  of  these  taxes.  There  are  about  fifty  Croatan  Indians  in 
all  living  in  this  community,  and  are  in  great  need  of  educa- 
tional help  and  encouragement.    They  have  never  attended  the 


A  Plea  for  Separate  Schools  45 

colored  schools,  and  rather  than  surrender  their  racial  status 
they  will  continue  to  support  the  public  schools  by  taxation 
and  support  their  own  schools  by  private  subscription,  and  by 
a  community  farm.  Enoch  Manuel  taught  this  school  for  sev- 
eral years,  and  now  the  principal  of  the  school  is  L.  V.  Man- 
uel. These  people  are  highly  respected  by  the  white  people 
among  whom  they  live  and  they  show  no  trace  of  negro  blood. 
Their  Indian  blood  is  vouched  for  by  the  Indians  of  Robeson 
County,  who  have  intermarried  with  them,  and  teach  in  their 
schools  and  preach  in  their  churches. 


46  The;  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 

THE  INDIAN  PHOTOGRAPHS  AND 
PICTURES 

W,e  have  procured  from  the  homes  of  these  Indian  fam- 
ilies a  few  photographs,  showing  the  type,  of  these  Croatan 
Indians  today  living  in  Sampson  County.  It  will  be  readily 
seen  that  they  are  neither  white  people,  negroes  or  mulattoes. 
They  all  have  straight  black  hair,  the  Indian  nose  and  lips, 
their  skin  a  light  brown  hue,  mostly  high  cheek  bones,  erect 
in  their  carriage,  steel  gray  eyes  and  an  intelligent  counte- 
nance. Where  the  white  blood  predominates  many  of  them 
have  beards. 

They  are  the  true  type  of  the  Croatan  Indian  and  have 
always  resided  and  lived  in  this  section  and  known  as  "free 
persons  of  color."  There  are  a  few  of  these  people  that  have 
intermarried  with  mulattoes,  but  all  those  of  negro  blood  have 
been  excluded  from  this  sketch  and  no  demands  or  claims  are 
made  in  their  behalf,  as  under  the  law  they  are  properly 
classed  with  the  negroes. 

We  append  to  this  booklet  a  brief  sketch  of  a  few  of  the 
most  prominent  Indian  families  prepared  a  few  years  ago  by 
Enoch  Manuel  or  Emanuel,  a  typical  Croatan  Indian,  now 
over  seventy  years  old,  a  farmer  in  Dismal  Township,  Sampson 
County,  also  the  builder  and  teacher  of  the  private  Indian 
school  known  as  "Shiloh"  in  that  township.  His  photograph 
and  that  of  his  Indian  wife  appears  in  this  booklet.  He  was 
aided  in  preparing  this  sketch  by  C.  D.  Brewington,  the  teach- 
er of  the  Indian  school  in  Herrings  Township,  and  who  was 
educated  at  the  Croatan  Normal  School  in  Robeson  County. 
His  picture  also  appears  in  this  sketch. 


A  Plea  for  Separate  Schools  47 

BRIEF  SKETCH  OF  A  FEW  PROMINENT 

INDIAN  FAMILIES  OF  SAMPSON 

COUNTY 

By  Enoch  Emanuel  and  C.  D.  Brewington 

SKETCH  OF  THE  EMANUEL  FAMILY 

The  mixed  race  of  people  living  in  Sampson  County  are 
sure  that  the  statements  given  to  us  by  our  ancestors  concern- 
ing our  origin  are  true.  We  have  only  asked  for  Indian 
prestige,  while  we  know  in  our  veins  also  flows  the  blood  of 
our  white  ancestors. 

We  have  always  been  told  by  our  fathers  and  mothers  that 
we  were  mixed  with  the  lost  colony  of  the  Roanoke.  We  there- 
fore are  a  mixture  of  Governor  White's  colony  and  the  orig- 
inal Indians. 

I  have  been  requested  to  write  a  short  history  of  our  race. 
I  am  seventy  years  old,  and  have  spent  my  life  among  my  peo- 
ple. I  have  taught  the  schools  in  the  Indian  community  for 
the  past  thirty-five  or  forty  years.  Though  we  were  not  known 
in  the  public  mind  as  Indians,  yet  I  knew  all  the  while  that 
we  were  pure  white  and  Indian  descent. 

Nicholas  Emanuel,  who  was  a  soldier  in  the  Revolutionary 
War,  and  fought  side  by  side  with  the  white  soldiers,  was  my 
grandfather.  He  was  the  son  of  one  Ephraim  Emanuel,  the 
son  of  the  first  Nicholas  Emanuel,  who  was  said  to  be  the  de- 
scendant of  white  and  Indian.  It  was  told  me  that  they  mar- 
ried Portuguese  women.  One  of  the  women  was  named  Ma- 
halie.  The  other  I  do  not  know.  My  grandfather,  Nicholas 
Emanuel,  married  Millie  Hale,  a  pure  white  woman,  of  Scotch- 
Irish  descent.  Their  oldest  son  was  Shadrack  Emanuel,  who 
was  born  during  the  beginning  of  the  Revolutionary  War. 
All  the  other  children  were  born  soon  after  the  war.  Among 
them  was  my  own  father,  Michael  Emanuel.  He  married 
Pharby  Harding,  who  was  the  daughter  of  Jonathan  Harding, 
white  and  Indian. 


48  The  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 


ENOCH    MANUEE    AND    WIFE,    SARAH    E.    MANUEE,    DAUGHTER    OF 
AMOS   HARDING— Dismal  Township,   Sampson   County 

ENOCH  MANUEL  AND  WIFE,  SARAH  E.  MANUEL 
Enoch  Manuel  and  wife  live  in  Dismal  Township,  Sampson  County. 
He  is  now  70  years  old.  His  father  was  Michael  Manuel  and  lived  on 
South  River  and  died  in  1858.  Michael's  father  was  Nicholas  Manuel, 
a  soldier  in  the  Revolutionary  War,  in  John  Toomer's  Army.  His 
father  was  Ephraem  Manuel.  The  records  of  Sampson  County  show, 
book  5,  page  222,  that  in  the  reign  of  George  III  Benjamin  Williams 
conveyed  to  Ephraim  Manuel  400  acres  of  land,  lying  on  the  east  side 
of  Great  Coharie,  charging  annual  quit  rents  to  His  Majesty.  We  find 
another  deed  from  Solomon  Hardin  to  Levi  Manuel,  dated  October 
10,  1778,  for  125  acres  on  March  Branch  and  Miry  Bottom  Branch  in 
Sampson  County,  consideration  50  English  pounds.  There  are  numerous 
other  old  deeds  to  the  Manuel  family  on  record  in  Sampson  County. 


A  Plea  for  Separate  Schools  49 

The  father  of  Ephraim  Manuel  was  Nickey  Manuel  and  came  from 
Roanoke  River  and  claimed  to  be  half  white  and  half  Indian.  There 
is  no  trace  of  negro  blood  known  to  exist  in  the  Manuel  family  as  far 
back  as  they  have  any  record. 

Enoch  Manuel  says  that  his  ancestor,  Nickey  Manuel,  raised  Mat- 
thew Leary,  father  of  Sheridan  Leary,  who  was  killed  in  John  Brown's 
insurrection  at  Harper's  Ferry.  Sheridan  Leary  was  a  brother  of 
John  S.  Leary,  a  lawyer  of  Charlotte,  formerly  of  Fayetteville,  N.  C. 
(See  foot  note,  McPherson's  Report,  last  page.)  Sarah,  wife  of 
Enoch  Manuel,  whose  picture  appears  above,  was  a  daughter  of  Amos 
Hardin,  a  wheelright  in  Honeycutts  Township,  and  was  recognized 
as  a  Croatan  Indian.  This  couple  have  seven  children  and  numerous 
grandchildren.  They  have  not  intermarried  with  the  negro  race,  and 
their  children  attend  Shiloh  Indian  School  in  Dismal  Township,  of 
which  school  Enoch  Manuel  was  the  founder. 


My  mother's  mother  was  one  Lanie  Jackson,  a  white  wo- 
man. Therefore  as  you  can  plainly  see,  my  father  and  mother 
were  pure  white  and  Indian.  •  My  wife  was  the  daughter  of 
Amos  Harding  and  Cassie  Lockamy,  a  white  woman,  of  Irish 
descent. 

We  had  in  our  home  several  sons  and  daughters.  Jonah 
Emanuel,  who  married  Luberta  Bledsole,  daughter  of  W.  J. 
Bledsole.  W.  J.  Bledsole  was  the  son  of  Mary  Bledsole,  a 
white  woman,  his  father  unknown.  He  is  evidently  a  white 
man,  with  some  trace  of  Indian  blood.  Enoch  Emanuel,  Jr., 
also  married  a  daughter  of  the  above  W.  J.  Bledsole.  Macy 
L,ee  Emanuel  married  Hassie  J.  Jones  of  Robeson  County,  a 
person  of  white  and  Indian  descent.  All  of  the  above  are  de- 
scendants of  the  late  Nicholas  Emanuel  and  Jonathan  Hard- 
ing. 

Many  of  the  members  of  the  Emanuel  family  have  moved 
to  other  sections.  They  are  now  living  in  as  many  as  seven 
different  States  of  the  Union.  Some  have  spelled  our  name 
Manuel ;  others  Emanuel.  I  have  followed  the  latter  form  for 
our  name  in  this  pamphlet. 

William  J.  Bledsole,  one  of  the  most  prominent  Indians  of 
Sampson  County,  was  evidently  a  white  man  with  only  a  small 
degree  of  Indian  blood.     His  wife  was  Nancy  Emanuel,  the 


50  The  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 


WILLIAM  J.   BLEDSOLE  AND  WIFE,  NANCY  ANN   BLEDSOLE,   SISTER 
OF   ENOCH   MANUEL — Dismal   Township,    Sampson    County 

WILLIAM  J.  BLEDSOLE  AND  WIFE,  NANCY  ANN  BLEDSOLE 
This  couple  reside  in  Dismal  Township,  Sampson  County.  The 
father  of  William  was  a  Croatan  and  his  mother  was  Mary  Bledsole, 
a  white  woman.  Nancy,  his  wife,  was  Nancy  Manuel,  a  sister  of 
Enoch  Manuel,  and  youngest  daughter  of  Michael  Manuel.  The  Man- 
uels  were  large  land  owners  in  Sampson  County  prior  and  since  the 
Revolutionary  War.  There  is  no  record  in  their  family  history  or 
family  tradition  for  over  ISO  years  showing  any  mixture  of  negro 
blood.  This  couple  have  seven  children :  Docia,  wife  of  Enoch  Manuel, 
Jr.;  Rutha,  wife  of  Ollin  Brewington;  Molsy,  wife  of  Matthew  Burn- 
ette;  Isabella,  wife  of  Erias  Brewington;  Lou  Berta,  wife  of  Jonah 
Manuel ;  W.  L.  Bledsole,  who  married  Amandy  Warrick ;  James  Henry 
Bldesole,  who  married  Hannah  Warrick.     Amandy  and  Hannah  were 


A  Plea  for  Separate;  Schools  51 

daughters  of  William  J.  Warrick  and  wife,  Betsie  Manuel  Warrick, 
prominent  Croatans  of  Robeson  County.  The  Bledsole  family  are 
good  specimens  of  white  and  Indian  blood. 

youngest  daughter  of  Michael  Emanuel.  His  oldest  son, 
Luther  Bledsole,  married  Amandy  Warrick,  a  woman  of  white 
and  Indian  blood.  Her  father  was  William  J.  Warrick,  and 
her  mother  Betsie  Emanuel.  James  Henry  Bledsole,  his 
youngest  son,  married  Hannah  Warrick,  the  daughter  of 
the  above  named  William  J.  Warrick. 

The  Bledsole  families  are  fine  specimens  of  pure  white  and 
Indian,  seemingly  white  predominating  their  features.  I  have 
traced  our  people  back  for  seven  generations,  including  the 
boys  and  girls  of  school  age  at  present,  and  find  only  white  and 
Indian  ancestors. 

THE    MAYNOR   FAMILY 

William  A.  Maynor,  who  was  born  in  Sampson  County,  is 
a  descendant  of  Stephen  Maynor,  who  was  a  soldier  of  the 
Revolutionary  War,  as  the  records  in  Washington,  D.  C,  now 
show.  He  was  also  a  descendant  on  mother's  side  of  the  late 
Nicholas  Emanuel.  He  has  satisfactorily  proven  before  the 
courts  of  North  Carolina  and  Cumberland  County  that  his 
wife  was  at  least  two-thirds  Indian.  He  has  a  certificate  prop- 
erly signed  by  the  officials  of  Cumberland  County,  certifying 
these  facts. 

The  Maynors  are  said  to  be  descendants  of  Manteo,  the 
friendly  Indian  chief  of  historical  times.  (See  McMillan's 
History  of  the  Indians  of  Robeson  County.) 

SKETCH   OF   THE   BREWINGTON   FAMILY 

The  Brewington  family  is  now  the  largest  of  any  Indian 
family  in  Sampson  County,  most  of  which  are  the  children, 
grandchildren,  great-grandchildren,  and  even  the  great-great- 
grandchildren of  the  late  Raford  Brewington,  father  of  Hardy 
A.  Brewington.  He  had  several  other  sons  and  daughters. 
Brewington  is  a  pure  English  word,  which  means  a  brewer  of 
drinks,  and  we  would  also  add,  one  that  likes   such   drinks 


52  The  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 


LUTHER  BLEDSOLE  AND  CHILDREN  AND  HENRY  BEEDSOEE  AND 

WIFE,    HANAH 
Dismal   Township,   Sampson   Co.,   N.    C. 

Hannah  Bledsole  was  Hannah  Warrick  of  Robeson  County.     She  has  three  brothers 

now  living  in  Robeson  County  who  have  large  families  of  children, 

all  attending  the   Indian    Schools 


after  they  have  been  made,  which  is  one  of  the  characteristics 
that  followed  this  family  for  several  generations,  and  even 
now  the  evil  practice  is  overcome  only  by  the  very  best  of 
training.  This  name  was  first  given  to  an  Indian  who  was 
considered  by  the  white  settlers  of  what  is  now  Sampson 
County,  as  an  excellent  maker  of  "fire  water,"  as  the  Indians 
called  it.  They  called  him  Bill  Brewington.  His  Indian  name 
was  dropped,  and  he  was  taught  the  language  of  the  English. 


A  PeEa  for  Separate  Schools  53 

Bill  Brewington  was  the  grandfather  of  the  late  Raford  Brew- 
ington,  just  mentioned  above. 

Bill  Brewington's  wife  was  a  Cherokee  Indian,  by  the  name 
of  Jane  Brewington,  who  lived  a  good  many  years  after  her 
husband's  death.  They  had  a  daughter,  Hannah  Brewington, 
who  if  now  living  would  be  upwards  of  one  hundred  and  forty 
years  old.  Hannah  Brewington  is  well  remembered  by  few  of 
the  oldest  people  of  the  county,  namely  John  Emanuel,  Jona- 
than Goodman,  James  Strickland,  and  others.  They  describe 
her  as  being  a  true  specimen  of  the  original  Cherokee,  she 
being  of  a  copper-reddish  hue,  with  prominent  cheek-bones, 
straight  black  hair  and  black  eyes.  She  bought  land  in  the 
year  of  1807,  as  the  records  in  Clinton,  N.  C,  now  show, 
though  before  that  time  she  and  her  people  lived  on  the,  banks 
of  Coharee,  without  any  need  of  buying,  as  the  land  was  held 
in  common  by  the  Indians  of  those  days. 

The  above  Hannah  Brewington  was  the  mother  of  Raford 
Brewington,  who  has  already  been  mentioned  in  this  section. 
She  helped  a  poor  illiterate  bound  white  boy,  who  was,  as  we 
have  been  told,  a  son  of  a  soldier  who  was  killed  during  the 
Revolutionary  War,  while  bearing  arms  for  the  independence 
of  America.  Soon  after  the  death  of  his  father  his  mother 
also  died,  leaving  the  child  to  provide  for  himself.  His  name 
was  Simon,  and  as  he  was  placed  under  the  control  of  a  man 
that  owned  a  good  many  servants  and  slaves,  he  was  given  the 
title  that  has  ever  been  known  as  his  name,  "White  Simon." 
Hannah  Brewington  proved  to  be  a  friend  to  this  poor  orphan 
hoy,  and  in  time,  by  early  Indian  custom,  she  and  he  were 
married.  Soon  after  the  marriage  of  this  couple,  Raford,  a 
son,  was  born  in  their  home.  Simon  having  no  real  surname, 
adopted  the  name  of  his  wife.  Soon  after  the  birth  of  the 
above  Raford  Brewington,  his  father  left  the  State  and  went 
north.  He  has  never  returned,  but  was  heard  from  a  few 
times  indirectly.  Thus  you  see  the  beginning  of  the  Brewing- 
ton  family  of  Sampson  County. 

One  other  son  and  daughter  were  born  to  Hannah  Brew- 
into,    namely,    Nathan    Brewington    and    Nancy    Brewington. 


54  The  Croatan  Indians  oe  Sampson  County 


HARDY  A.   BREWINGTON 

Sampson    County 


HARDY  A.  BREWINGTON 

The  Brewington  family  is  the  largest  family  of  Croatans  living  in 
Sampson  County.  Hardy  is  the  son  of  Raiford  Brewington,  and  the 
grandson  of  Hannah  Brewington,  who  lived  in  Sampson  County  from 
1775  to  1850.  The  records  in  the  office  of  Register  of  Deeds  in  Samp- 
son County  show  that  she  purchased  lands  in  the  county  in  1807  on 
Coharee.  She  is  well  remembered  by  lonathan  Goodman,  lames 
Strickland  and  other  old  men  now  living.  They  describe  her  as  being 
a  copper-reddish  hue,  high  cheek  bones,  straight  black  hair  and  a 
good  specimen  of  the  Cherokee  Indian.  She  married  "White  Simon," 
so  called  because  he  had  no  surname,  and  was  half  Indian  and  half 
white.  After  the  marriage  he  took  her  name  and  was  known  as  Simon 
Brewington.  Raiford  Brewington  was  their  son  and  married  Bashaby 
Manuel.  They  owned  nearly  a  thousand  acres  of  land  on  Coharie 
prior  to  the  Civil  War.  Hardy  A.  Brewington,  their  son,  married 
Francis  Harding,  daughter  of  Amos  Harding.  They  have  several 
sons  and  daughters.  One  son,  Rev.  M.  L.  Brewington,  is  a  minister 
and  affiliated  with  the  Eastern  Carolina  Association,  which  is  com- 
posed  principally   of   the   Indians   of    Robeson    County.      Another   son, 


A  Plea  for  Separate;  Schools  55 

J.  Arthur  Brewington,  married  Polly  Ann  Jacobs,  daughter  of  Jno.  R. 
Jacobs  and  grandson  of  Jesse  Jacobs. 

The  Brewington.  family  for  seven  generations  with  one  or  two  ex- 
ceptions, have  not  intermarried  with  persons  of  negro  blood,  and  have 
retained  their  racial  status  to  a  remarkable  degree. 


Nathan  Brewington  became  a  great  dancer,  using  the  greatest 
skill  and  grace  in  rendering  the  famous  Indian  dances  of  a 
hundred  years  ago.  He  was  so  perfect  in  his  performance 
that  he  became  almost  world-famed  for  dancing  and  fiddling. 
He  took  one  trip  to  Europe,  and  it  was  said  that  he  played 
before  the  King  of  England.  Finally  he  returned  home  and 
married  one  Miss  Chavis,  of  Robeson  County. 

One  of  the  curses  most  destructive  to  our  people  was  the 
love  for  strong  drink — whiskey,  wine,  cider,  beer  and  brandy 
are  drinks  that  they  once  made,  and  drank  freely  and  to  ex- 
cess. Much  of  the  property  owned  by  these  early  settlers  was 
lost  by  the  traffic  in  alcoholic  drinks.  We  see  that  the  early 
habits  of  these  people  have  been  much  to  the  detriment  of 
younger  generations,  yet  we  point  to  our  ancestors  with  love 
and  admiration.  May  their  name  ever  linger  in  our  hearts  and 
minds.  Our  ancestors  are  after  all  not  so  different  from 
other  people  of  those  days.  "We  are  told  that  the  old  "Scot" 
would  sell  his  horse  and  pawn  his  coat  for  a  jug  of  liquor,  and 
the  now  cultured  and  refined  English  also  participated  in  these 
most  destructive  habits. 

"This  brings  us  down  to  our  own  time's  recollection.  We 
remember  the  late  Raford  Brewington  well.  If  we  had  the 
skill  we  could  paint  the  true  likeness  of  him  as  a  loved  and 
honored  ancestor.  He  died  at  the  ripe  age  of  eighty-four 
years,  when  the  writer  was  only  a  boy.  Raford  Brewington 
accumulated  quite  a  lot  of  real  estate  and  personal  property 
while  in  the  vigor  and  strength  of  his  early  manhood.  He 
owned  nearly  a  thousand  acres  of  land  between  the  two  Co- 
haries.  He  had  gained  all  this  wealth  prior  to  the  Civil  War, 
and  when  the  Union  Army  passed  through,  in  1865,  they  took 
from  him  two  or  three  thousand  dollars  worth  of  provisions 


56  The  Croatan  Indians  oe  Sampson  County 


Boys — Top  Row,  Eeft  to  Right:  M.  L.  Brewington,  son  of  H.  A.  Brewington; 
Henry  Brewington,  son  of  J.  Arthur  Brewington;  J.  H.  Brewington,  son  of  H. 
A.  Brewington;  Robert  Jones,  grandson  of  H.  A.  Brewington;  June  Ammons.  son 
of   Ella  Ammons. 

Girls — Bottom    Row,    Left    to    Right:     Ollie    Brewington,    daughter    of    M.     L. 
Brewington;    Bessie   Jones,    daughter    of   Jno.    R.    Jones;    Essie    Goodman,    daughter 
of  W.   E-    Goodman;    Bessie   Brewington.   daughter   of   W.    B.    Brewington. 
All  of  Herrings  Township,  Sampson  County 


and  cattle.  The  claim  for  damages  for  this  depredation  has 
been  settled  by  the  Federal  Government.  He  was  styled  as 
one  of  the  leading  citizens  of  his  community  in  his  day,  and 
the  home  that  he  secured  for  himself  and  family  speaks  for 


A  Plea  for  Separate  Schools  57 

him  intelligence  and  industry.  His  land,  though  bought  by 
him  eighty  years  ago,  still  remains  as  property  of  the  family. 
It  is  located  on  the  east  side  of 'Beaver  Dam  Swamp.  (This 
swamp  was  so  called  by  our  ancestors  because  of  the  dams 
found  in  it  that  were  built  by  the  beavers. ) 

J.  Arthur  Brewington  is  the  grandson  of  above  Raford 
Brewington,  a  son  of  the  above  mentioned  Hardy  Brewington, 
and  is  now  living  in  the  old  homestead  of  the  Brewingtons. 
He  married  the  daughter  of  John  R.  Jacobs  and  Polly  Ann 
Jacobs.  John  R.  Jacobs  was  the  son  of  Jesse  Jacobs,  and 
Polly  Jacobs  was  the  daughter  of  the  late  Raford  Brewington. 

Hardy  A.  Brewington  married  the  daughter  of  Amos 
Harding  and  Cassie  Lockamy  Harding,  the  latter  having  al- 
ready been  referred  to  as  to  her  descent.  Nearly  all  of  Hardy 
Brewington's  sons  and  daughters  have  married  persons  of 
their  own  race  and  color,  the  majority  of  them  now  living  in 
or  near  the  old  Brewington  homestead  in  Herrings  Township 
on  Coharie.  His  sons  and  daughters  and  their  children  are 
among  the  leading  Indians  of  Sampson  County.  Rev.  M.  L. 
Brewington,  being  a  minister  in  the  Baptist  Church,  affiliated 
with  the  Eastern  Carolina  Association,  an  association  being 
composed  principally  of  the  Indians  of  Robeson  County. 

Judging  from  features  and  general  characteristics,  and 
from  the  information  given  us  by  our  ancestors,  with  the  in- 
formation we  have  gained  from  our  Indian  and  white  friends, 
we  believe  that  this  particular  family  is  undoubtedly  of  pure 
Indian  and  white  blood,  white  predominating  in  some  and 
Indian  in  other  members  of  the  family. 

We  have  traced  the  genealogy  of  the  Brewington  family 
from  "Bill"  Brewington  to  the  present  generation,  as  follows : 

"Bill"  Brewington  and  Jane  Brewington  were  the  parents  of  Han- 
nah Brewington. 

Hannah  Brewington  and  "White  Simon"  were  the  parents  of  Ra- 
ford Brewington. 

Raford  Brewington  and  Basha  Emanuel  were  the  parents  of  Hardy 
Brewington. 

Hardy  Brewington  and  Frances  Harding  were  the  parents  of  nearly 
all  of  the  present  families  of  Brewingtons,  which  have  numerous 
children  of  school  age. 


Left    to    Right:    Lee   Locklear.    Steve   Lowrey.    French    Locklear 
French  Locklear  married  the  daughter  of  J.  Arthur  Brewington,  of  Sampson  County 


LEVANDER    MANUEL,    SON    OF    EN-     JUNE  BREWINGTON,  SON  OF  J,  AR-- 


OCH  MANUEL 
Dismal   Township,   Sampson   County 

Educated     at      Pembroke     Indian      Normal 
School.      Last    Teacher    of    Shiloh    In- 
dian   School,    Dismal    Township, 
Sampson   County 


THUR      BREWINGTON,      GRAND- 
SON  OF   HARDY   BREW- 
INGTON 
Herrings  Township,  Sampson  County 


A  Plea  for  Separate  Schools 


59 


C.  D.  BREWINGTON 

C.  D.  Brewington,  grandson  of  Raiford  Brewington,  Herrings 
Township,  Sampson  County.  He  was  educated  at  the  Pembroke 
Normal  Indian  School  and  taught  in  the  public  schools  of  Robeson 
County;  also  taught  at  New  Bethel  Indian  School  in  Herrings  Town- 
ship, Sampson  County.  He  is  a  teacher  and  minister,  and  preaches  in 
the  Croatan  churches  of  Sampson  and  Robeson  counties.  He  married 
Bessie  Chavis  of  Robeson  County,  a  Croatan. 


SKETCH  OF  THE  JONES  FAMILY 

John  R.  Jones  is  the  son  of  Martha  Jones,  and  his  father 
was  a  white  man.  Martha  Jones'  mother  was  one  Polly  Jones, 
a  pure  white  woman,  and  her  father  was  an  Indian.  She 
was  one-half  white,  one-half  Indian.  John  R.  Jones,  there- 
fore, was  three-fourths  white,  one-fourth  Indian.  He  mar- 
ried Macy  A.  Brewington,  the  daughter  of  Hardy  Brew- 
ington.    They  have  a  large  family  of  boys  and  girls  in  their 


60  The  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 


JONATHAN  GOODMAN 

JONATHAN  GOODMAN 
The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  now  76  years  old  and  resides  in  Honey- 
cutts  Township,  Sampson  County.  His  wife,  now  dead,  was  Dorcas 
Maynor.  Their  children  and  grandchildren  attend  the  Indian  school 
in  Herrings  Township.  Jonathan  Goodman's  father  was  Timothy 
Goodman  and  his  mother  was  Nancy  Maynor.  The  records  in  the 
Register  of  Deeds'  office  of  Sampson  County  show  that  Timothy 
Goodman  was  a  large  land  owner  before  the  Civil  War,  and  after  his 
death  his  widow,  Nancy  Goodman,  was  assigned  dower  in  this  land 
in  Sampson  County,  according  to  these  records.  She  was  a  typical 
Croatan  Indian  and  showed  no  traces  of  negro  blood.  Jonathan's 
grandmother  was  Nancy  Revell,  and  the  Revell  family  are  now  promi- 
nent Croatans  in  Robeson  County. 


home,  white  predominating,  seemingly  in  himself  and  his 
entire  family.  Martha  Jones  is  now  living  and  says  the  above 
statements  are  true.  Also,  judging  from  her  features  and  gen- 
eral characteristics,  it  is  a  self-evident  fact  that  she  is  of  In- 
dian and  white  extraction.  The  said  Martha  Jones  also  has 
another  son  and  several  daughters,  who  are  undoubtedly  of 
pure  white  and  Indian  blood. 


A  Plea  for  Separate;  Schools  61 

SKETCH  OF  THE  GOODMAN  FAMILY 

Timothy  Goodman  is  the  founder  of  this  particular  family 
in  Sampson  County.  He  is  said  to  have  represented  in  features 
and  general  appearance  the  Indian  race,  he  having  straight 
black  hair,  and  his  complexion  being  of  reddish  hue.  His 
mother  was  one  Sallie  Hobbs.  His  father  unknown.  He  mar- 
ried Nancy  Maynor,  a  woman  who  was  an  excellent  specimen 
of  the  Cherokee  Indian  race.  Jonathan  Goodman  is  the  son 
of  the  above  Timothy  Goodman,  and  we  are  sure,  judging 
from  his  general  appearance,  that  he  is  at  least  three-fourths 
Indian,  with  only  one-fourth  white.  His  first  wife  was  one 
Dorcas  Maynor,  Indian,  daughter  of  Morris  Maynor.  Many 
sons  and  daughters  were  born  to  this  couple,  after  which  the 
first  wife  died,  and  he  married  his  present  wife,  Lucy  Fair- 
cloth,  who  was  the  daughter  of  a  white  woman  by  the  name  of 
Mary  Faircloth.  Her  father  being  unknown  to  the  writer. 
Mary  E.  Brewington  is  the  daughter  of  Lucy  Goodman,  her 
father  being  an  Indian.  Mary  E.  Brewington  married  James 
Brewington,  a  son  of  Raford  Brewington.  They  also  have 
several  sons  and  daughters. 

SKETCH  OF  THE   SIMMONS  FAMILY 

William  Simmons,  the  father  of  most  all  of  the  Simmons 
of  Sampson  County,  was  born  in  the  eastern  part  of  Sampson 
County,  near  Faison,  N.  C.  In  early  life  he  married  one  Pen- 
ny Winn,  of  Wayne  County,  N.  C.  William  Simmons  is  now 
dead,  but  he  has  often  told  the  writer  that  he  was  of  pure 
white  and  Indian  descent,  and  judging  from  his  features  and 
general  characteristics,  we  are  quite  sure  that  his  statements 
were  true,  he  having  long  black  hair,  and  prominent  cheek 
bones,  and  his  color  corresponding  very  strikingly  with  the 
real  Indian.  His  wife  is  living,  and  resides  near  Clinton,  N. 
C.  James  Simmons,  one  of  the  sons  of  William  and  Penny 
Simmons,  is  a  very  prominent  farmer,  and  has  accumulated 
quite  a  lot  of  real  estate ;  also  his  other  brothers  have  shown  a 
good  share  of  industry,  which  has  resulted  in  a  similar  accum- 
ulation. Percy  Simmons  married  the  daughter  of  Hardy  A. 
Brewington. 


62  The;  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 


WILLIAM    SIMMONS 

Sampson    County 


BLTSY  J.  SIMMONS 
Sampson    County 


BETSY  J.  SIMMONS 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was  formerly  Betsy  J.  Thornton.  She 
married  Green  Simmons  in  1843  in  Clinton.  She  is  the  mother  of 
William  Simmons  and  has  numerous  grandchildren  residing  in  Samp- 
son County  who  claim  to  be  free  from  all  negro  blood.  Betsy  had 
grey  eyes,  straight  hair,  high  cheek  bones,  and  in  general  appearance 
was  half  Indian  and  half  white. 


WILLIAM   SIMMONS 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  lived  in  South  Clinton  Township,  Samp- 
son County,  but  died  a  few  years  ago.  His  wife,  still  living,  was 
Penny  Winn  who  lived  near  Neuse  River  in  Wayne  County.  William's 
mother  was  Winnie  Medline,  who  married  Jim  Simmons  in  Fayette- 
ville,  and  she  made  an  affidavit  in  1902,  in  order  that  her  son  William 
could  vote  under  the  grandfather  clause,  that  her  mother  was  a  white 
woman  and  that  her  father  was  an  Indian.  She  further  states  in  her 
affidavit  that  there  was  not  a  drop  of  negro  blood  in  her  veins  or  those 
of  her  children.  Her  son,  William  Simmons,  had  dark  brown  eyes, 
straight  hair  and  high  cheek  bones  and  light  brown  skin.     He  claimed 


A  Plea  for  Separate  Schools  63 

that  his  grandfather  and  grandmother,  on  his  father's  side,  were  In- 
dians and  came  from  Roanoke  River,  and  never  affiliated  with  the 
negroes.  William  Simmons  has  eighteen  grandchildren  whose  parents 
have  not  intermarried  with  the  negro  race,  and  these  children  are 
without  school  advantages  except  by  private  subscriptions. 


SKETCH  OF  THE  JACOBS  FAMILY 

The  Jacobs  family  formerly  lived  in  Sampson  County,  but 
now  live  principally  in  Wayne,  Robeson,  and  other  counties, 
leaving  only  one  or  two  persons  of  that  family  among  the 
Indians,  but  several  of  the  female  members  of  this  family  have 
married  into  the  Brewington  family,  namely,  the  wife  of  J. 
Arthur  Brewington,  the  wife  of  M.  L.  Brewington,  who  were 
the  daughters  of  John  R.  Brewington  ;  the  wife  of  T.  H.  Brew- 
ington was  the  wife  of  G.  B.  Brewington,  who  were  the 
daughters  of  Enos  Jacobs,  who  is  now  living  in  Coharee,  in 
Herrings  Township.  He  is  regarded  as  being  a  man  of  Indian 
and  white  descent,  and  his  wife,  who  was  the  daughter  of  the 
late  Timothy  Goodman  and  Nancy  Maynor  Goodman,  is  al- 
most pure  Indian.  She  has  only  a  very  small  degree  of  white 
blood.    This  family  are  fine  specimens  of  the  Indian  race. 

THE    INDIAN    FAMILIES   OF    SAMPSON    COUNTY 

The  people  now  living  in  Sampson,  Robeson  and  adjoining 
counties  of  this  State  and  many  other  State  of  the  Union  are 
undoubtedly  the  Indian  race  mixed  with  the  whites.  Among 
the  most  prominent  families  of  Sampson  County  are  the 
Emanuels,  Brewingtons,  Jacobs,  Bledsoles,  Jones,  Maynors, 
Stricklands,  Simmons,  Goodmans,  Faircloths  and  Amnions. 

The  features  of  these  people  betray  the  fact  that  white  and 
Indian  blood  alone  course  through  their  veins.  The  educational 
status  of  these  people  is  very  low,  owing  to  their  having  been 
deprived  of  schools  within  reach  of  their  own  race  and  color. 
Only  a  few  have  obtained  a  fair  education,  owing  to  the 
above  conditions. 

The  above  statements  can  be  verified  by  John  Emanuel, 
who  is  now  seventy-four  years  old ;  by  J.  S.  Strickland,  who 
is  now  seventy-six  years  old ;  by  Jonathan  Goodman,  who  is 


64 


The;  Croatan  Indians  of  Sampson  County 


ABRAM  JACOBS 
The  subject  of  this  sketch  lived  on  Rowan  Swamp  and  Marsh 
Branch  in  Sampson  County  at  the  time  of  the  Revolutionary  War.  In 
1764,  a  grant  from  King  George  III  was  issued  to  him  for  200  acres 
of  land  on  Rowan  Swamp.  See  Register's  Office,  Sampson  County, 
book  1,  page  474.  Later,  in  1791,  Cornelius  Sikes  conveyed  to  him  36 
acres  of  the  south  side  of  Six  Runs  in  Sampson  County,  see  book  9, 
page  132t  Abram  Jacobs  was  a  Croatan  Indian,  and  was  the  grand- 
father of  Jesse  Jacobs.  In  1843  Reuben  Reynolds  conveyed  78  acres 
of  land  to  Jesse  Jacobs  lying  on  the  west  side  of  Great  Coharie.  There 
are  numerous  other  deeds  on  the  records  of  Sampson  County  to  Jesse 
Jacobs.  His  son,  Jno.  R.  Jacobs,  married  a  sister  of  H.  A.  Brewington. 
J.  Arthur  Brewington  married  Rosia  Lee  Jacobs,  a  sister  of  Jno.  R. 
Jacobs.  There  is  no  trace  of  negro  blood  in  this  branch  of  the  Jacobs 
family  since  1764,  as  far  back  as  they  have  any  history.  Their  children 
and  grandchildren  are  recognized  as  Croatans  and  attend  the  Indian 
schools. 


ENOCH  MANUEL,  JR.,  AND  FAMILY 
Dismal  Township,  Sampson  County 


A  Plea  for  Separate  Schools 


65 


HENRY  BLEDSOLE  AND  WIFE,  HANNAH,  FORMERLY  HANNAH 

WARRICK,  OF  ROBESON  COUNTY 

They    now    reside    in    Dismal    Township,    Sampson    County.      They    are    both    fair 

tyes  of  Croatan  Indians.     Henry  is  the  son  of  William  J.   Bledsole  and 

wife  whose  pictures  appear  elsewhere  in  this  booklet 


now  seventy-one  years  old ;  by  H.  A.  Brewington,  who  is 
seventy-one  years  old ;  by  Lucy  A.  Strickland,  who  is  now  sev- 
enty-five years  old ;  by  Simon  P.  Brewington,  who  is  now 
sixty-eight  years  old  ;  by  J.  L.  Brewington,  who  is  now  sixty- 
nine  years  old ;  by  Enoch  Emanuel,  who  is  now  seventy  years 
old ;  by  W.  J.  Bledsole,  who  is  now  about  seventy  years  old ; 
by  Enos  Jacobs,  who  is  now  seventy  years  old  ;  by  Matilda 
Jacobs,  who  is  now  seventy  years  old ;  by  Lucy  Goodman,  who 
is  now  ninety  years  old;  by  Mary  E.  Brewington,  who  is  now 
seventy-two  years  old ;  by  Penny  Simmons,  who  is  now  sev- 
enty-five years  old ;  and  many  others. 

Note. — In  the  above  sketch  of  the  Jacobs  family,  there  appears  the 
name  of  Enos  Jacobs,  who  is  now  over  seventy  years  old  and  lives  on 
Coharee  and  is  a  typical  Croatan  Indian.  It  will  be  noted  that  the 
name  "William,"  "Bill,"  and  "Will"  are  familiar  names  in  the  Simmons 
and  Brewington  families.  The  occurrence  of  these  two  names,  "Enos" 
and  "Will,"  in  these  Indian  families  is  a  strong  suggestion  that  the 
origin  of  the  names  came  from  "Enos-Will,"  the  friendly  and  intelli- 
gent Indian  of  the  Coree  tribe  found  by  John  Lawson  in  1702  living 
on  the  Neuse  River,  not  many  miles  from  the  present  habitation  of 
these  Indians  now  on  Coharee  in  Sampson  County. 


THE  SEEMAN   t 


00032197159 


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This  book  may  be  kept  out  one  month  unless  a  recall 
notice  is  sent  to  you.  It  must  be  brought  to  the  North 
Carolina  Collection  (in  Wilson  Library)  for  renewal. 


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